DOUG DAVID, born in Seattle Washington 1971
mother Sandra Bluehorse….sisseton-wappiton nakota. north dakota usa
father Joe David…………..Tla o qui aht. b.c. canada
i am the single father 7 children , 4 of home age who live with me in Port Alberni b.c located on central Vancouver island b.c.
both my parents are artist’s so i dont really have a definite starting point for my career, i have always been around it and allot of my early drawings i’ve been told were images mimicking the art being created around me by my parents.
my father went in another direction from his family when i was 3 yrs old. so i was predominately schooled by my mother in her traditional ways of the plains indians. allot of 2d painting and construction art like dreamcatcher’s, rawhide parfleche’s, painted shields and leather and beadwork. my first outlet for commercial art was at the Pike Place Market in Seattle Wash. at the age of twelve with my mom.
i spent a few summers growing though with my father up off of Tofino, where my fathers people have lived for thousands of years. he had two cabins, a main house and a private room/cabin, on a isolated island belonging to our people. it was here at age 8 that my father first began teaching me the stories that demand these images as well as the care of and use of these tools. the knives and adzes and mauls and chisels.
my father was a determined worker and had opportunity to see many incredible images emerge from rough blocks of ancient cedar. momeents that i flash back to from time to time.
i have been an artist my whole life but it is only part of me. i have lived and traveled from alaska to hawaii and from california to the Dakotas, along the way learning the local forms of expression. i have most enjoyed aside from carving cedar, making Pahu drums from coconut trees to sell to the art market as well as hula halau’s – native dance schools, of hawaii, maui and Oahu.
my work is collected to almost every continent in many different forms. and i have participated in a handful of major exhibitions on the westcoast of canada and the u.s.
i am represented by:
Cedar house gallery, ukee, b.c
House of Himwitsa, tuff , .bc.
coastal Peoples gallery, yaletown, vancouver b.c.
the path gallery, whistler b.c.
douglas reynolds gallery, van b.c.
eagle spirit gallery, granville island, van b.c.
the legacy, seattle washington
the stonington gallery, seattle wash.
and many more smaller scale galleries that i can unfortunately only supply occasionally
aside from all that jazz, we are a sport family, i have and coach a jr. girls all-native basketball team for my daughters. as well i play masters basketball myself. with my son we train martial arts together and i help his peewee football team. if we cant be found were probably out for a run in the trail system here in beautiful port alberni.
Isaac or Ike Charlie started carving at the age of ten. He was taught by his older brother Art Charlie II. His mother hailed from Ahousaht, BC and his father from Sweden. Ike has been carving for 30 years. At a very young age he achieved as a professional artist. At the age of 18 he was teaching a native art class at the Ha-ho-pa-yuk School in Port Alberni, BC. He has also worked in the Victoria, BC school district as a native art and cultural teacher. Ike has worked many jobs, but has always come back to his art, and now he is a full time artist. He has returned to Port Alberni, here on Vancouver Island, where he was born. He has taught many other youth who were interested to carve privately. Ike is a father to four children and learning as much as he can, so he may pass these teachings onto the next generation. Ike is well respected by his family and reflects the care he shows to to all of them. His work is contemporary and he carves masks, plaques,model poles, feast dishes, and aspires to learn other mediums.
