Talking Stick Festival - And The Tree Of Life
Wednesday, February 18, 2015
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| Nyla Carpentier |
Talking Stick Festival Feb 17- Mar1, 2015
When I met my Canadian wife to be Rosemary Healey in Mexico
City in 1967 she told me that in all her time in New Dublin, Ontario and even
when she went to Queens she had never noticed any “Indians”. In fact, she
further informed me the Canadian totem pole in Chapultepec Park was the first
time she had ever seen such a thing.
When we came to Vancouver in 1975 I was astounded to see
what I thought were Mexicans in the streets of Vancouver. Such was the level of
bad information in those years of my youth that I truly thought the Japanese
were yellow and the North American Indians were red. It was in 1975 that I
learned that native Canadians looked very much like the natives of my Argentine
homeland and of Mexico. I was perplexed that the Canadian Natives I attempted
to talk to did not speak any Spanish. |
| Margo Kane |
Now in 2015 I feel that I know a bit more about the original
inhabitants of my adopted country. But for me, living in the city, driving on
Marine Drive through the Musqueam Nation, on my way to a UBC concert at the
Chan, Native Canadians are almost invisible. I rarely find information in our
local media. In fact my Vancouver Sun seems to have no information on this
February 17 to March 1 Talking Stick Festival.
I can assert that the many Chinese immigrants that now
surround me in my neighbourhood are not in any way as exotic as my concept of
the Native Canadian.
At the opening gala ceremony yesterday of the Talking Stick
Festival I listened to the golden voice (not loud but with perfect diction) of Shane
Pointe the master of ceremonies. I particularly liked how he gesticulated with
his hands as he spoke. It seemed that everything he said was in a story form.
He mentioned how the local cedar trees are universally
appreciated, loved and used by the Coastal First People. At that point I knew I
had to meet up with the man and share my thoughts on the cedar.
Anybody who is a keen gardener (I am one) will know that the
true cedar or Cedrus is a tree
indigenous to Europe and the Himalayas. What here in Canada we call a cedar is
in fact, botanically Thuja plicata or
Western Red Cedar.
My Mexican poet friend Homero Aridjis says that Canadians
never knew where the Monarch Butterflies wintered. He told me that he and the
Mexicans of his home state of Michoacán knew this but did not know where they
came from. In the same way the Coastal First People knew all about their “cedars”.
It was an Englishman, William Lobb who “discovered” the Thuja plicata,.
Explorer David Douglas who had “discovered” the Douglas Fir, Pseudotsuga menziesii, had somehow
overlooked our Thuja. Shane Pointe in his talk mentioned that the Thuja plicata is called the tree of life by his people. I had to tell him that another name for his tree is Arbor vitae (Latin for tree of life). I did not want to further complicate the matter by telling him that arbor vitae is the cerebellar white matter, so called for its branched, tree-like appearance in the human brain!
For me the paradox of this wonderful tree, Thuja plicata
is that nothing underneath will grow. The tree defends its territory with a
root system that has a caustic substance that kills many plants. If you rub your
face with a thuja branch you will get welts. This tree, so lovingly and
efficiently used by Native Canadians has to be treated with caution and
respect. Perhaps there is in this a lesson that many of us might consider.
For the Pleasure of Seeing Her Again
Living Edward Curtis Photogravure
Lawrence Paul Yuxweluptun
Michael Nicoll Yahgulanaas
Native Royalty
One of the most pleasant surprises for me at the gala was to find that not only was there lots of traditional art and dance featured but also there was a contemporary take to aboriginal art. Dancer Nyla Carpentier accompanied by an electric guitar performed not only with skill but with a humour free of any ceremonial seriousness. I was delighted by Lawrence Paul Yuxwluptun's two works. One was a 3-D piece devoid of colour and the second one shown above made me think that I was looking at the surrealist art of Ladislav Guderna. There was more fine work by other artists on thee wall of the Roundhouse. My only regret is that the absence of my favourite male dancer, Byron Chief-Moon was probably due to his increasing bad back problems.
For the Pleasure of Seeing Her Again
Living Edward Curtis Photogravure
Lawrence Paul Yuxweluptun
Michael Nicoll Yahgulanaas
Native Royalty
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| Lawrence Paul Yuxweluptun - Shaman Coming to Fix the Dying Land Acrylic on Canvas 2015 60" x 72" |
