Inlaid Child's Bracelet

Burled Cherry Wood Blank

Harold Alfred: Engraved Hammered Copper Plate

Harold Alfred hammered copper plate. A Native American Kwakiuti whale. This can either be displayed on the wall or on a table/display cabinet. It is a beautifully designed whale on hammered copper. It has a soft matte coating over the front of the plate. The back has some scratches as you can see in the photos. On the front there are some small spots that seem to be under the coating. This plate measures 10-1/2 inches at the widest spot and 8-3/4 inches at the narrowest. The front does have soft scratches. its overall condition is very good. 

Biography 

 

Harold (Jackson) Alfred was born in Alert Bay, B.C. and is a member of the Kwakwakawakw (formerly Kwakiutl) Nation and was born into the Namgis tribe in 1953. Growing up in Alert Bay , constantly surrounded by the arts, one could not help but be influenced by the magic and majesty of the designs, figures and poles created by the great masters of the past. As a result, Alfred produces outstanding work which has a contemporary feel with a strong sense of the past. Alfred shows his respect for his heritage by following the standards set by past masters and strives to develop a distinct style which clearly depicts the strong traditional designs true to Kwakiutl art form. His logo is the powerful Thunderbird which is one of the founding crests of the Namgis.

Tom Dubois: Hand Turned Sugar Maple Bowl, 2001

A hand turned bowl of sugar maple. Measures about 4 inches tall x 6 inches across top diameter. Signed Tom Dubois and dated 2001. 

Tom Dubois is a licensed psychologist by trade, but keeps a workshop in the little coastal town of Eliot, Maine for wood turning, which is his passion. He writes, “In shaping wood I imagine that the spirit of the tree is found and released in a new form, and in each piece I try to bring out the inherent character of the color, texture, and figure of the wood. Every vessel is a celebration of the wood from which it is made."

He continues, “There is a timeless beauty and universality in certain vessel forms. My shapes and forms are sometimes influenced by my wife, Anne, who is a painter, and I am often inspired by the work of artists in other media such as pottery and glass.”

Dubois works with different kinds of wood from all over the world, much of which he purchases on eBay. The hunt for interesting samples, he says, is addictive. But the process of making a piece is long. After shaping the wood into a rough form, or blank, it must be seasoned, or left to breathe and dry, for at least one year.

Then Dubois takes it up again and uses lathes and chisels to shape, or turn, the wood. He finishes the wood with various methods, from giving it a good rub of linseed oil and wax, to applying a hard varnish, to leaving it as it is. Some pieces are topped with small aluminum finials, which he also fabricates by hand on his metal lathe.

Inuit Snow Knife

Julian Seppilu: Carved Oosik

Vintage Eskimo carved oosik with whale baleen inlay by First Nation carver Julian Seppilu (b. 1953). Measures 16.5" in length. Missing one tusk and the other is broken.