West Coast Raven Dancer

When Dennis was just 20 years old, he attended a potlatch and, while watching a raven dancer perform, was particularly struck by a moment in which the dancer, in one sweeping movement, covered their face and then lifted their head, emerging with the visage of a raven in a seemingly effortless transformation of masks. Allen was so captivated by this aspect of the dance that he remembered it for years after, and spent a decade working on the design of this panel until he felt satisfied that it captured that transformational instance, and his emotional reaction to it, as perfectly as he needed it to. The result of that effort is this transformation panel–a piece that reflects that foundational moment in Allen’s history.