Search Results: Art - First Nations/Indigenous Art from Capricorn Books

Washington, D.C.: Arctic Studies Center, National Museum of History, 2012. 87 pp, 11" H. Profusely illustrated with colour and b&w photographs, maps. The catalogue of the exhibition. "(F)eatures twenty-three pieces by this master sculptor, widely celebrated for his ability to tell us deep histories in new ways. His massive, intricately carved narratives speak not only of Inuit prehistory and settlement but of Viking legends and forays into the New World. The results are astounding, not just in terms of their great beauty and craftsmanship, but also the dialogues they present about ancient and living northern cultures." from the Preface. Interior - clean and tight with no previous ownership marks. Exterior - very minor corner edge wear/wrinkling, minor rubbing on the rear cover.. Not Signed. First Edition. Soft Cover. Very Good. Illus. by Abraham Anghik Ruben, sculptor..

N.P.: BridgeWater, 1996. 96 pp, small 4to (10 1/8" H). Wonderful colour illustrations and decoration throughout. "Just as we have four grandparents, and our lives come from their lives, so we might describe fire, earth, water, and air as our 'Four Ancestors'. From the giant who pulled the sun across the sky to the mighty elk who created the earth, from the greedy monster who kept the rivers from flowing to the bird whose wings made the wind, this collection offers tales from more than twenty Native North American cultures. Joseph Bruchac's masterful storytelling combines with evocative illustrations by four Native American artists to create a unique celebration of the mystery and power of the natural world." Minor edge rubbing, slight curvature to front board. Dust jacket has very light rubbing on flap-folds, minor wrinkling at top/bottom of rear flap-fold and at top of spine, light fading to colour on middle section of spine.. First Edition. Hard Cover. Very Good+/Very… Read More

Don Mills, Ontario: Oxford University Press, 2009. 500 pp, 9 1/4" H. B&w illustrations. "(A) remarkable look at the development of Canadian art, from the first appearance of Native crafts through to Booker Prize winners such as Margaret Atwood and Yann Martel. In tracing the history of Canada's cultural roots, Jonathan Vance also tells the story of Canadian identity." Chapter headings: The First Artists; The Meeting and Mingling of Cultures; Colonial Societies; Common Showmen and Mountebanks; Culture on the Frontier; The Dream of Useful Knowledge; 'Streaks on the Horizon'; Importing Culture; Exporting Culture; The First World War; The New Parliament of Art; Patron Saints of Culture; The Second World War; Government Patronage; The Cultural Flowering; The Regulatory State; Towards the Future. Book is Fine. Dust jacket has a faint curved line indentation on the rear panel. . Not Signed. First Edition. Hard Cover. Fine/Near Fine.

Toronto: Canadian Stage & Arts Publications, 1988. 176 pp, oblong 8vo (8 1/2" H x 11" D). Profusely illustrated with b&w and colour photographs, maps. Some additional text in Inuktitut. "The ancient art of Inuit dollmaking is disappearing slowly but surely. The real Inuit play dolls have already come to an end and today, the only dolls that remain are collectors' dolls made by Inuit dollmakers for the southern retail market. We have put this book together, most particularly for the Inuit growing up today, in order to preserve an important part of their cultural heritage." Interior - gift inscrption on first page, otherwise clean and tight with no other ownership marks. Exterior - minor edgewear/wrinkling, minor rubbing.. First Edition. Soft Cover. Very Good.

Ottawa: National Museum of Man, 1980. 267 pp, oblong large 8vo (9 3/8" H x 10 5/16" D). Profusely illustrated with b&w and colour reproductions. Bilingual text (English/French). "The 155 prints reproduced in this widely acclaimed catalogue, 12 of them in full colour, constitute a retrospective survey of the first twenty years of Inuit printmaking in the Canadian Arctic. Selected for exhibition internationally, the prints provide exciting insights into the traditions and beliefs of a unique group of artists. Five widely scattered communities are represented - Cape Dorset (where James Houston introduced the Inuit to this form of expression in 1957 and guided their first experiments), Holman, Baker Lake, Pangnirtung, and Povungnituk and other centres in Arctic Quebec. Each community's printmaking history, artists and stylistic techniques are comprehensively documented. The texts accompanying the prints explain the events that are depicted or elucidate the lore and mythology… Read More

Toronto: Altona / Natural Heritage, 1992. 48 pp, 11" H. "An epic retelling in poetic form of the creation myth of the Mississaugas. The author of the poem, W. Gordon Mills, was a businessman with the T. Eaton Company in Toronto in 1923 when he wrote the poem. He was later to serve as Deputy Minister of National Defence for Naval Services in the Second World War. In recognition of his wartime work he was named a Companion of the Order of Saint Michael and Saint George (CMG). The poem is illustrated by eleven paintings, specially commissioned for this publication. The paintings are the work of Saul Mamakeesick, a young Cree/Ojibway artist from Sandy Lake in Northern Ontario. Mamakeesick's art shows the influence of the Woodland School of Native Art which first began to depict Anishinabeg legendary heroes in its art in the early 1970s." Interior - clean and tight with no previous ownership marks. Exterior - clean and bright. Soft Cover. Near Fine. Illus. by Saul Mamakeesick..

Washington: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1998. 192 pp, 4to (11 1/4" H). Profusely illustrated with b&w and colour photographs and drawings. "Among the Mande-speaking groups dispersed throughout much of West Africa, certain artists - including potters and leatherworkers - form a spiritually powerful social class in which gender determines craft specialization. Ceramic water jars and cooking pots are made only by the wives and female relatives of blacksmiths. Leather objects such as knife sheaths, amulet cases, and, more recently, western-style shoes and bags are produced by male leatherworkers. While these objects display features common to those of other West African groups, the manner in which they are produced has remained distinctly Mande. Analyzing the work of Mande potters and leatherworkers, (the author) argues that studying craft technologies in addition to object styles is essential to reconstructing the art heritage of an ethnically complex region. Drawing on archaeological… Read More

Toronto: Natural Heritage, 1992. 174 pp, 10 3/4" H. B&w photographs, colour and b&w reproductions. "Throughout (this book) Daphne Odjig's story has been told by herself as related through R.M. Vanderburgh and M.E. Southcott. As a product of an oral tradition that was still flourishing during her childhood in the village of Wikwemikong on Manitoulin Island in Georgian Bay, Daphne became a superb storyteller, in the tradition of her elders. It is this inheritance that she has built on as she told her stories to her two collaborators. Odjig's skills as a storyteller are reflected in the impressionistic introductions to many of the chapters. Her lively expresion of events and activities in her life come vividly alive for Vanderburgh who has maintained as much as possible the authenticity of Odjig's narratives and tried to pass these impressions along to the reader. Odjig's skill in visual communication is evident in the paintings reproduced here. Southcott has… Read More

Thunder Bay, ON: Ahnisnabae Art Gallery, 2011. 220 + XVII pp, 9 3/4" H. Colour and b&w reproductions, photographs. Signed on title page: "James R. Stevens". Chapter headings: Chief Antoine Morrisseau tells The Legend of Nani-Bou-Sha and The Flood. Norval's inherited surname; Sand Point, East Shore, Lake Nipigon. Theresa Grace Nonokongis, Lawrence Obrey and Abel Morrisseau; St. Joseph's Boarding School, Norval and Ronald Morrisseau in Fort William, Ontario; Beardmore, Ontario - The Greenbelt Zone; The Brilliant Emergence & Withdrawal; The O.A.C. artist, Susan A. Ross, Norval's Mentor; The young gallery owner, Jack Pollock - dealing with Norval; Merv Farrow meeting Norval on hotel row, Port Arthur; James R. Stevens: Meeting Norval in Red Lake; Artist Roy Thomas meets Norval in the Geraldton Jail, 1969; Norval's Images 1959-1970; The Ojibway Catholic Paintings; Robbie Levack's Northern Art Road: Ray Andrews, Norval and Sandy Lake artist, Carl Ray; Norval… Read More

Calgary, Alberta: Glenbow-Alberta Institute, 1991. 200 pp, 11 1/4" H. Profusely illustrated in colour and b&w. "(P)rovides a glimpse into the vast collections of the museum and tells the stories of their origin and acquisition. From 1954 to 1966, Glenbow was the pride of Eric L. Harvie, Calgary philanthropist. During those years, he brought priceless objects from all parts of the world, while his staff concentrated on collecting western Canadian artifacts. Since then, Glenbow has added significantly to its collections and has gained international acclaim for its exhibitions and museum programs." Very minor wrinkling at top of spine. Dust jacket has minor wear/wrinkling at top/bottom of spine and flap-folds.. First Edition. Hard Cover. Near Fine/Very Good+.

Toronto: Stoddart, 1990. 134 pp, oblong large 8vo (9 1/4" H x 11 15/16" D). Profusely illustrated with colour reproductions of the artist's work and b&w photographs. "(C)elebrates the distinctive talent of the Canadian painter Allen Sapp, a Cree from Saskatchewan, and his relationship with Dr. Allan Gonor, mentor and friend. Sapp specializes in paintings depicting native life as he remembers it on the Red Pheasant Reserve near North Battleford, with subjects ranging from social activities and farming chores to full-dress ceremon-ies. These remarkable examples of Canadian art might never have existed were it not for Dr. Gonor, a man of uncommon insight who early recognized Sapp's ability and encouraged him to paint from his own experience rather than trying to copy other artists' modes of expression. Sapp's career flourished after Gonor's excellent advice and support in the generous style of the traditional artist's patron. The result: finely detailed… Read More