Over six decades of brilliant prints and paintings from the most
prominent Northwest Coast artist of his generation.
Since leaving Haida Gwaii to study art in Vancouver--where he carved
argillite with Bill Reid in a department store and hand-sold prints on
the UBC campus--Guud sans glans, Robert Davidson has moved between two
worlds. As a host of Potlatches, carver of masks and totem poles, and
performer and teacher of traditional Haida songs and dances, he has been
one of the driving forces in the resurgence of Haida culture in the
aftermath of colonization. As an artist working in serigraphs, acrylic,
wood, silver, and aluminum to preserve and breathe new life into Haida
formline, he has become among the most respected, celebrated, and
thrilling artists in the country, if not the world.
Echoes of the Supernatural is the first publication in over forty
years to offer a comprehensive visual retrospective of his astonishing
career. It includes new photography of over 150 prints, as well as
images of over fifty paintings; numerous painted woven hats, painted and
carved sculptures, jewellery, aluminum sculpture; and dozens of archival
photos. His long-time gallerist Gary Wyatt, who worked closely with
Davidson in shaping the book and received full access to his archives,
details the artist's life and career, and offers insights on the work
based on extensive new interviews. A foreword by Karen Duffek situates
the contours of Davidson's practice within the broader Northwest Coast
art world.
