Thinking Outside the Bowl
Sometimes I just need to change it up a bit and try some new shapes, integrating new materials, or doing something altogether different. Here are some examples:
Banff Bison Blessing Bowl
This is a bowl I made for a very special smudging ceremony, used to welcome wild plains bison back to Banff National Park, after an absence of over 150 years.
The bowl is made of birch – as a symbol of respect for the traditional knowledge of Canada’s Indigenous People. It was birch bark canoes that played such a significant role in the history of Canada’s fur trade. Hopefully we can continue to listen and learn, through sharing of traditional knowledge, by Canada’s Indigenous People.
The base that “grounds” this bowl, is made from a twisted trident of rusty railroad spikes – to remind us of how close the bison came to becoming extinct, with westward march of the railway and European settlers.
During the ceremony, the bowl was lifted from the base, leaving the past behind, as the buffalo people held it in their steady hands.
You will note that the bowl has a round bottom (no foot) and tends to wobble without the supporting hands to guide it around the smudging circle – this reminds us of the inextricable relationship between bison and Canada’s Indigenous People, and the responsibility we all share in supporting the return of wild bison to Banff.
The bison tracks on the rim of the bowl come full circle and represent the endless path of the bison, through the past, present and future…
Conductors Baton - False Ivory.
Yarn Bowl - for knitting
Shorebird
Mixed Media - Oak, historic square-nail, and maple burl plinth.
Metalwork
I also do a bit of metalwork. Here is an example of a mixed media piece in the form of a double-swing, iron, garden gate. It has copper cattails with turned and stained cedar cattail heads. One cattail extends through the bottom to lock the left side of the gate, while another in the centre springs across to act as the gate latch for the right side.
