Indigenous Artist takes Off
Following a whirlwind of 2010 Olympic activity, Tsimshian artist Bill Helin continues to break new ground. Bill’s 12-metre war canoe, Ravensong, carved from a 540-year-old cedar tree from the Stikine Valley, was the centerpiece of the the Klahow-ya Village at the Pan Pacific Hotel during the 2010 Olympics. The Klahow-ya exhibit was organized by the Aboriginal Tourism Association of British Columbia.
An article in the Vancouver Sun quoted Bill commenting at the time that “The beauty of the canoe is it has always been a family affair. We repainted it [for its journey to the 2010 Olympics], and the whole family kicked in to help. It was wonderful to see my mom with her grandchildren working on the canoe.” For some reason, the sight of moving the canoe into the Pan Pacific Hotel caught international press attention and stories and photos of the event went viral in the global media.
Earlier in May of this year Canadian astronaut Dr. Robert Thirsk and Danish Cosmonaut Frank Dewinna visited the Nanaimo museum. At this event Bill was acknowledged for designing the second crew patch for Dr. Thirsk.
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