Beautiful hand carved 5' yellow cedar paddle with a traditional carved raven design and contemporary painted colours. Created by Gitxsan artist Trevor Angus.
Raven occupies a central position in traditional Gitxsan origin stories. Raven brought light to the world. He placed the first humans on earth and provided food and fire for them. Trevor Angus creates carvings that illustrate the ancient stories of Gitxsan oral history.
Trevor Angus has learned from and trained with all the great Gitxsan artists who evolved with the Gitanmaax School of Northwest Coast Indian Art at Ksan in Hazelton. Trevor is from Kispiox, which is a 15 minute drive from Gitanmaax.
The Gitxsan word for shaman is ‘Halait’. The modern term often used is ‘Indian doctor’. Gitxsan shamanism is rooted in the relationship between human beings, the other beings that inhabit the physical environment, and the beings in the spirit realm. In traditional Gitxsan belief all beings - animals and fish, plants and trees, and even rocks - are beings with spirits. An indian doctor may diagnose and heal sicknesses through interceding with helpers from the spirit world. He or she also consults on the health of the environment, and communicates with the spirit realm about the future.
