ISLAND OWL ARTIST FEATURE

Corrine Hunt

LEGACY SUBTITLE

It’s no secret; the Hunt name is synonymous with the Indigenous Art World. I remember growing up in the 1970s and ‘80s knowing that the Hunts from northern Vancouver Island were some of the best First Nation Artists in the world. In my opinion, there are no exceptions and here is another great artist from the long line of Hunt’s: Corrine Hunt, Contemporary First Nations Artist.

While growing up in Alert Bay, she was taught that culture stems from family; everything she knows she learned from her childhood. “Being in Alert Bay and surrounded by family, as children, we absorbed so much about our culture without really knowing what we were being taught," she says. "Potlatch played such an important role in our lives and still does. It’s in my blood.”

Hunt’s Great Great paternal Grandmother A’neesla’ga’ was a noble woman from the Tlingit Clan in Alaska. She married Robert Hunt and they settled in Fort Rupert. While A’neesla’ga’ passed away in 1919, this Hunt still wears A’neesla’ga’s Tlingit robes in ceremony today. Because her Great Great Grandma was such a powerful woman, her songs and dances have been passed down and they are still danced today. Women have been the most strong and powerful mentors that Hunt has had and she holds that in very high regard as the number of decedents in the Hunt line is in the thousands.

Hunt has been working on a film about A’neesla’ga’ for years; there was a family reunion approximately four years ago with 650 family members in attendance which is just a drop in the hat with their relations. The film would be honoured as a reconciliation piece featuring A’neesla’ga’ and Robert Hunt. When the Hunt family comes together, it is a very powerful happening but they went through a period of family not wanting to embrace their culture due to the impacts of systemic racism.

There is documented information regarding a census taken in the early 1900s in Alert Bay. One of the daughter’s

responses was unprecedented at the time. The census asked to state your religion and her response was FREE THINKER. Hunt feels like this embolded future generations of Hunts to be strong and believe in themselves. A’neesla’ga’s father who was a high-ranking Chief in the Tlingit circle was visited by an American Ambassador when Alaska was sold to the USA. The Ambassador did not gift the Chief, which was customary, so to react to this indiscretion he built a shaming pole in Ketachan, Alaska to show the disrespect of the Ambassador and the transaction. “I think most of the fire within us comes directly from our heritage, our ancestors, our culture,” notes Hunt about these historical occurrences.

Within her Art life, Hunt remains very busy. “I feel busier than ever; for many years I lived in Vancouver and travelled back and forth between the Island. I’m back in Fort Rupert and so very happy to be present here, surrounded by family,” Hunt tells us. Hunt loves to build furniture and really likes to create fusion pieces with her Kwakawakawa and Danish influences. Being back close to family, she enjoys the opportunity of working with Calvin and Stan Hunt. “Although I’m well known in contemporary art circles, the Legislative Chief recently noted they were building a Directory of Artists for Fort Rupert to figure out who’s who, they weren‘t sure how to describe my artistry, living in both worlds contemporary and traditional,” Hunt shares as she laughs a little and is humbled.

Hunt has an upcoming exhibition on Laughter, being hosted by the Coastal Peoples Fine Art Gallery in the Gastown District of Vancouver. “It’s really important for people to see us as living breathing human beings with a light,” she notes, and that is her goal as an Artist to show the contemporariness. “How we live in this world, bringing with us our families and ancestors – on this journey together.” An Auntie dropped by recently, who is 86 years old, “we just wanted to see what you are working on,” she said to Hunt and looked at the Happy face piece and another contemporary piece Eagle winking that was being completed; “oh that’s what you are up to” Auntie said looking confused as to what Hunt was up to. “It was funny to see her response; in no disrespectful way, just people’s reactions to my art are why I continue to produce contemporary pieces. Hunt is really interested in collaborating with some family members and is looking at an exhibition opportunity with her uncle, Calvin Hunt. “It was a total coincidence; we both submitted works during the 2010 Winter Games which were decorated Coca-Cola bottles being auctioned off for Indigenous Youth in Sport. They weren’t sure which artist was to be recognized as there were two both with initials CH.”

“Every day is a new day for me; I love to be able to do what I do” boasts Hunt. Coastal Peoples Gallery were the first ones to step up and support Hunt on with a multi-media project using metal and wood. She is really happy with the people she works with and they inspire her by always pushing for new creations and ideas. Hunts finds colour pallettes very inspiring and Covid has allowed her to play with so many new ideas.

Currently, Hunt is working on a piece for the playground at U’mista Cultural Centre in Alert Bay and she worked with the school in Fort Rupert, building a RAVEN piece with coloured pencils with youth. They spent about sixmonths creating this piece. “I like working with youth and love the idea that they can create their own stories. I not only guided by the past, but linked to the future, to harness imagination of the youth” Hunt adds. The Bus Stop Graffiti Project ‘Be Kind’ was a pretty incredible and rewarding experience for Hunt in Fort Rupert. “Everyone’s eyes are on the outcome. You can see the reaction of the adults, elders and the youth; it’s very interesting to watch the intergenerational conversations sparked with these projects” notes Hunt. She is anticipating a youth mural project at the Learning Centre at home as well.

IHunt designed the 2010 Winter Games Medals for VANOC. At the time, her first Noguchi table was exhibited at a gallery in Yaletown. The exhibit and the table caught the attention of a VANOC staff and they loved it. She was sought after to submit an RFP for the Olympic medals and she was awarded the honour. “The entire experience at VANOC was amazing” shares Hunt. She is still producing cultural museum exhibits; last year she was in New York and has been asked worldwide to share her talents including her hometown Alert Bay for the U’mista Cultural Centre. Hunt feels very blessed to able to do what she does!

Facebook @corrinehuntdesigner

Coastal Peoples Fine Arts Gallery

www.coastalpeoples.com

CORRINE HUNT

Chilkat Raven

Corrine Hunt

coastalpeoples.com

BEING HUMAN

JAMES L. ANDERSON

ANOTHER COUNTRY HEARD FROM

You and I, in these days, at this time, have the

impossible job to create a New Human World. Together. Against all odds. We can only think, see and live “parts”, never the Whole… and not only do we not comprehend why? we were given the gift of life -- but do not understand and cannot resonate to what actually IS the true destiny and meaning of this magnificent universe because we now can only live separate, disconnected and “solitary one” lives that we have never yet escaped or at last truly SHARED. We are not fully evolved. We do not now know anything except the primitive, ignorant “Self”, I, ME each of us live all of our private, lonely lives. We cannot and simply do not really know anything else like we know what we live. With the SYMBOLS, logic, rational reason, science and the colossal perfectly discrete and DEFINED Ordered Web of mathematics and astounding technology…we are really only ignorantly seeing OURSELVES everywhere populated and mirrored in what actually is an illusion. A Grand Illusion that is not Universe… and with all this technology, AI and our flawed artificial, alternate SYMBOLIC “intelligence” --instead of Creating a Human heaven on Earth, there seem to be Global fools (who are only the “extreme expression” and terminal phase of the monstrous selfish ignorance we all “selfish” Humans cannot now help but ignorantly manifest) that are using all this artificial “intelligence” and secreted technology to enslave and stealthily SPY upon us, not to set us free. And it now is beginning to seem reasonable to suspect that “They” have stepped beyond all morality, decency and elemental humanity, insanely believing “They” righteously deserve to become sacred and divine Gods of ‘SELF’ that are ordained to destroy, derange and dehumanize Humankind justifiably…to save their sacred Gloried “SELVES”…not to save the Human Dream that we all are. If such a monstrous insanity is now abominably afoot in this our modern terrified and disintegrating world today.. you and I somehow must now gather together, finding a higher mindscape to galvanize around and do the impossible again…to evolve…and survive. In spite of everything. Against all odds. You and I must begin by focusing upon the secret truth that we were created Human and given the glorious gift of LIFE for something incomprehensibly more than all this modern selfish madness. We were created to EVOLVE. And the first outrageous baby step in that evolution into a New Species, and a New Way to be Human on this Earth is to begin to “Share” life itself and learn what it will be like to live another Human life than our own. We will then at last have opened the door to escape oblivion and extinction, and have set our Human life force on the path into a new Golden Age in the future for all of our children’s children where each of us CARE for each other as we now obsessively, instinctively and totally care now… for ourselves. In the myriad collage of countless varieties of Humans on this earth all of us live lives of endless varieties of different forms, shapes, “amenities” and gifts. We speak thousands of different tongues. Are red, yellow, black, white and brown and all manner of shades between, and we range all over the scale in every depth and dimension

you can imagine. Yet somewhere at the root center of us all we are the same. The same. As besieged as our world may seem, now, - hanging on masked, social distanced and imprisoned in this inhuman, alien and dark despairing world today-… we have a chance to do something that is simply truly Human now beyond belief in our impossibly difficult lives today. We can evolve and learn to truly “Share” our disconnected, discrete lives where we at last truly CARE for one another, becoming a United, Family of Humankind…where the Human Dream finally comes true. “There is something ahead, beneath the surface now, that is more important than power, politics. profit or propaganda. It is about a civilization, a life force, a dream that is yet unfinished. It is about finally fulfilling the destiny that we were all created for. It is about fashioning a human world and a human society free of greed, brutality, inhumanity or agony. It is about living together in peace and harmony and joy. It is about a human revolution that is yet undone, a better world that is yet to be. It is about carrying an ancient dream into a new universe…and a new human spiritual renaissance. Something impossible, never done before. Hand in hand…together.” “The Whisper of a Dream”, Saltspring Soliloquies © 2016 “Etched forever into the saga of universe is an indestructible truth that we can no longer turn away from, but must face full on in this “age of consequences.” It is the lesson of life, and eternity. It is what universe means. We must play out our part. We must bring the human dream home. We have always secretly known that universe would one day summon the life spirit inside us to a final confrontation. A confrontation with ourselves. The final challenge to be what we were created to become. Deep inside in the heart center we have known that there will come a point where humankind and universe itself will be poised finally on the threshold of total oblivion, or a new dawn…a new dream. This is that point. This is that dream.

“Metamorphosis” from Saltspring Soliloquies © 2016

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GROWING UP COASTAL

JOSEPH MCLEAN

I’ve seen the twilight come so many times, but my son took my hand and said: It looks like we’re living in a picture with a little river perfecting it the beauty of the water and the land the paths they built to launch their canoes the silence of the smallest little waves if you look really carefully you will see the castles in the clouds And we looked until the darkness came and hid everything away, but in my mind I saw a young man with the same tangled hair, standing in awe among the shifting sands of memory.

Joseph McLean lives in Powell River, spending his days with two young kids, a laid-back cat, and a fantastic wife named Katie. He has repaired a lot of computers; seen a number of mountain tops.

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