Exhibit Label

Some of the most striking and aesthetically pleasing products of the Northwest Coast carvers' art are wooden bowls. We should not be surprised that a utilitarian bowl can be a work of art. It seems to be a universal human trait to regard food containers as worthy objects for aesthetic expression. Often without elaborate surface decoration, they depend on elegant proportion and relationships of pure form for their beauty. Complete mastery of tool and material is evident in this large, graceful feast bowl. (Holm, Spirit and Ancestor, 1987)