Chiefly Feasts: The Enduring Kwakiutl Potlatch [B0496]

1991 PB in excellent condition, 10x10-inches. Chiefly Feasts present a magnificent collection of art made by the Kwakiutl Indians of northern Vancouver Island and the nearby mainland, assembled in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries for the American Museum of Natural History. More than one hundred objects - including masks, head-dresses, blankets, coppers, feast dishes, and other Kwakiutl ceremonial items - are illustrated in full color. Extended captions, incorporating information provided by many members of the Kwakiutl community, describe their history and acquisition.

From Amazon/GoodReads reviews: "Feasts for the eyes and soul....This book is gorgeous, full of beautiful art work and a very interesting read. No matter where you live, if you are interested in learning more about Native American culture this is a book for you. I was glad to learn more about the Kwakiutl. Chiefly feasts is really a feast for the soul!"; "Chiefly Feasts actually changed my life. I grew up all over British Columbia and one town we lived in was Campbell River where I saw the local First Nations culture living all around me. Their small museum held incredible Kwakiutl pieces like masks, carvings, totems, a shaman's apron with deer hoofs rattling. Just like Aldona Jonaitis, I was exposed to this at a young age and it impacted me with so much admiration for their art and relics. The story Aldona tells with this collection from New York's American Museum of Natural History is dramatic and fascinating and culminates when she arranges several Elders from Vancouver Island to go to the museum and see their collection. Turns out the Elders knew many of the artifacts and belonged to the families that owned and used these masks, costumes, artifacts in their Potlatch culture. They stood and sang the songs and danced the carefully arranged dance steps to their family pieces. Imagine the joy they must have felt to see and feel these ancient items. I cried with joy when reading this book. There is so much information and excellent pictures and history of how the USA obtained so much of the First Nations art from the Northwest of Canada when the Potlatch was banned by the Canadian Government at that time. I became keen on repatriating First Nations art back to Canada and that is what I do now, it is important to us as a nation. So that is how this book, Chiefly Feasts, has changed my life. "