CHARLES EDENSHAW, MUNGO MARTIN, BILL REID AND ROBERT DAVIDSON
His work in gold and silver engraving, using formline design, was the first ever produced and some claim it is still unsurpassed. Edenshaw’s argillite maquettes of totem poles are also considered the finest ever made. His attention to absolute precision, fine detailing, and imagery in all of his works has stood the test of time and elevates him as one of the greatest traditional Indigenous artists the world has ever known.
Most of Martin’s life occurred during Canada’s potlatch ban from 1885 to 1951. Martin, however, persevered to maintain his culture and traditions despite being under constant pressure to cease doing so from an antagonistic government. More than any other artist mentioned on this list, his works represent sacrifice and continuation. What his works might not quite achieve in terms of aesthetic acclaim, compared to the other artists on this list, he more than makes up for in prestige for having the courage to practice what he believed was inherently his right to do.
Others also practiced their culture and spiritual beliefs while producing works during this time—take Willie Seaweed and Dan Cranmer, for instance. But it was Martin’s works that are considered the finest. Like Edenshaw before him, Martin held a chief’s position, actively continuing the traditions of the Kwakwaka’wakw.
Reid made or oversaw the making of some of the most famous pieces of artwork in the history of Canada—raven and the First Men at the Museum of Anthropology, University of British Columbia; The Jade Canoe in the Vancouver International Airport; and The Spirit of Haida Gwaii located at the Canadian Embassy in Washington, D.C. Somewhat surprisingly, he didn’t grow up practicing his culture, as the rest of these individuals did. He came to it in the 1950s as a young adult with the “art” side of his grandfather’s culture being a powerful draw since he was aware of his artistic potential. He’s also the only one of these four who didn’t eventually become a chief.
Reid’s attention to fine craftsmanship is unparalleled; like Edenshaw, he’s particularly respected for the exquisite silver and gold jewelry he produced with Haida motifs. But it was his ability to envision large sculpted works—ones that captured the essence of a traditional story in a single moment; ones never before attempted and likely never even conceived until he imagined them; ones that would one day be placed on the postage stamps and currency of Canada—that further sets him apart from these three other great artists.
Those who knew him agree that Reid also had an exceptionally fine gift for gab; that’s how he convinced so many outstanding young artists—like Jim Hart, Don Yeomans, Reg Davidson—to do so much of the work that these monumental pieces required. The large-scale works were done in Reid’s later years, when various ailments had robbed him of the physical ability to do much of the manual labor. Ultimately, his legacy is mostly about breaking through long-established barriers, aspiring toward brave new possibilities in artistic expression and then realizing them.
Robert Davidson, the great-grandson of Edenshaw, being included on this list in some ways represents a return back to his ancestor’s legacy—that of the consummate artist of his generation in all things he attempts. It’s something that emanates from his traditional work as a Haida man and chief. Where Martin might be cast along the lines of a champion for human rights and Reid as a dreamer of grandiose things that then came to be, Edenshaw and Davidson are Haida men of astonishing talent who spent much of their lives laboring at works that honor their people in the most beautiful way they could.
Davidson began an 18-month apprenticeship under Reid in 1966 at the age of 19. By 1969, at the age of 22, he carved the first totem pole to be raised in 90 years on Haida Gwaii (formerly Queen Charlotte Islands). And, the first of several books to be written about Davidson and his art came out in 1979, when he was 32 years old. His career isn’t about a singular work but a 55-year collection of consistently exquisite efforts that continues to this day.
One of the most decorated Canadian artists ever, Davidson has received the Order of Canada, the Order of British Columbia, the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Canadian Aboriginal Achievement Foundation and was elected to the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts. His Haida name, Guud Sans Glans, translates to “Eagle of the Dawn.”