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C
h a r l e s E d e n s h a w
b. 1839 Da.axiigang,
Skidegate, Haida Gwaii
d. 1924
First Nations Affiliation: Haida
In his lifetime,
Charles Edenshaw (Chief Tahayghen) was hailed as one of his
nation's greatest carvers, whose work and knowledge was sought
by anthropologist Franz Boas and important collectors. Born
Da.axiigang, he moved to Masset, as was customary, to live with
his maternal uncle Albert Edward Edensaw, head of the
S'daast-aas eagle lineage, who gave him his chiefly name Itinsaw.
It is also surmised that Albert trained the young boy, who
already carved in argillite and silver, to carve totems. Unlike
other artists who needed to supplement their incomes with
fishing or hunting, by the 1880s, Edenshaw was supporting his
family completely through his art. His work has been celebrated
for being narratively original and innovative while adhering to
the complex formline design principles of classic Haida art.
S E L E C
T E D E X H I B I T I O N S
| 1998 |
Attributed
to Edenshaw: Identifying the Hand of the Artist.
University of British Columbia Museum of Anthropology,
Vancouver, BC |
| 1967 |
Arts
of the Raven.
Vancouver Art Gallery, Vancouver, British Columbia |
| 1927 |
Exhibition
of Canadian West Coast Art - Native and Modern.
National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario |
S E L E C T E D C O L L E C T I O N S
American Museum of
Natural History, New York
Thomas Burke Memorial Washington State Museum, Seattle, WA
Canadian Museum of Civilization, Hull, Québec
Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, Illinois
Pitt Rivers Museum, Oxford, England
Royal British Columbia Museum, Victoria, British Columbia
Seattle Art Museum, Seattle, Washington
University of British Columbia Museum of Anthropology,
Vancouver, BC
Vancouver City Museum, British Columbia
S E L E C T E D
B I B L I O G R A P H Y
Barbeau, Marius C. Haida
Carvers in Argillite. Ottawa, Ontario: Department of
Northern Affairs and National Resources, National Museum of
Canada, 1957.
Canadian Museum of
Civilization, ed. In the Shadow of the Sun: Perspectives on
Contemporary Native Art. Hull, Québec: The Museum, 1993.
Dockstader, Fredrick.
Great North American Indians: Profiles on Life and Leadership.
New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1977.
Duff, Wilson, Bill
Holm, and Bill Reid. Arts of the Raven: Masterworks by the
Northwest Coast Indian; An Exhibition in Honour of the One
Hundredth Anniversary of Canadian Confederation. Vancouver,
British Columbia: Vancouver Art Gallery, 1967.
MacDonald, George F. Haida
Art. Hull Québec: Canadian Museum of Civilization;
Vancouver, British Columbia; Toronto, Ontario: Douglas &
McIntyre, 1996.
National Gallery of
Canada. Canadian West Coast Art. Ottawa, Ontario: The
Gallery, 1927.
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