Saturday, July 23, 2011
Personal Reaction about Bill Reid Gallery
Before I came to Vancouver, I hadn't been curious about the First Nations' culture in Canada. However, once I knew the history, the culture, and the totem poles, I became interested in the First Nations. Although the Bill Reid Gallery was smaller than I expected, it was interesting. In particular, what I found interesting is tongues which most faces have. The thrusting tongues looks humorous, but actually it doesn't mean it. The tongue-thrusting is serious, and I heard that it shows that the creature is giving "knowledge" or "power" to the creatures to whom it is thrusting its tongue. Totem poles are not symbol of religion but symbol of the history. I felt the First Nations had found their history or origin very significant when I went to the gallery.
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I'm glad you enjoyed the BRG, Chieu, and I enjoyed reading your post about it. I think it's interesting how similar some of the indigenous peoples of the northwest coast are to some of the indigenous people in Japan, such as the Ainu.
ReplyDeleteAs for the elongated tongues on "Mythic Messengers," I had never thought of them as humorous, but that certainly is a possibility. Thanks for making me think!