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The Spirit of Haida Gwaii
The Spirit of Haida Gwaii sculpture, also called the Black Canoe, is one of the Embassy's signature pieces of art. For over 60 years, Canadian artist Bill Reid (1920-1998) drew from European techniques and resources like silver, gold, and bronze to create works of art in the same tradition as the aboriginal community and culture of the Haida people.
Twenty feet long and 13 feet high, The Spirit of Haida Gwaii weighs around 11,000 lbs. Reid and his team worked for five years on this ode to Haida mythology before installing the sculpture in 1991. After travelling from Haida Gwaii (formerly the Queen Charlotte Islands) in northern British Columbia, and with the help of a crane, the sculpture was placed on a rippling wave pond at the Embassy, its permanent home. |