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Northern Whales

This print is created in the style of the Tlingit Nation of Southeast Alaskan tradition. It is a tribute to those whom I have spent time learning aside and from. It’s sentiment carries forward memory of the late master weaver, Clarissa Rizal. It also shares homage to the design system I had studied early on under guidance of my first mentor, Steven C. Brown. Amongst the many tribes we are in the Pacific Northwest there are differences and overlapping themes. We are a diverse people with a rich understanding of our nuances with a surviving culture that endures. There are times few and far between where I am struck to complete a design I have genuine inspiration to create. This is one of those such examples. In years of admiring masterful works of studies in both museums and potlatches and gatherings. “I have gratitude for the families and individuals alike who have shared with me a window into culture that continues.” In this there are my own nuances as an individual that have become signature of my home. As a Puyallup a story exists where a great flood occurred and two whales were trapped that in the receding waters. The longing to be with their families pushed them to carved their way back to the ocean. This is one origin story of how the our river was made. This is perhaps that interpretation within that style.

-Qwalsius – Shaun Peterson