A show-stopping raven mask by Tim Alfred. Fully 6 feet long with an articulated beak and a bear face carved on the under side. $19,500. (Tucson)
Photo taken 1989, at a memorial potlatch for his brother when his mother’s family placed Tim in the family’s chief position at the Bighouse where he received the name “Mus-cum-tsi”, which symbolized the four clans of the Kwakwaka’wakw nation.
The T'łisala Sun mask above has a K'utala (salmon) and an Kwikw (eagle) encircling the face of the Sun. A full five feet across, this one hangs in our Tucson gallery. $5,000.
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A Spirit Bear mask with hammered copper eyes, by Tim. Just over 18 inches from snout to ears. SOLD. Below are some photos from the steps in the carving. (TUCSON)
Above is the sequence of the creation of a Tsonakwa mask by Tim. 20 inches across and a foot and a half tall. $2200 (Santa Fe)
Also spelled Dzunukwa, also Tsonoqua, Tsonokwa, she is a figure in Kwalwaka’wakw (Kwakiutl) mythology and is the ancestor of the Namgis Clan.
She is venerated as a bringer of wealth, but is also greatly feared by children, because she is also known as an ogress who steals children who wonder off alone into the woods and carries them home in her basket to eat. (Some versions have her with a long, slightly curved snout, suggesting the voracious mosquitos in that region.
This Daxaluł or Owl mask by Tim is 16 inches high to the top of the cedar bark and 12 inches across. $1200. (TUCSON)
At right is Pugwis is the (Old) Man of the Sea. He can appear with different visual attributes. In this case he has the horns of the sea creature known as Sisiutl and sports a quartz crystal on his forehead. 19 inches high and 17 inches across. $2100. (TUCSON)
Tim’s most recent work:a Pugwis - Old Man of the Sea -with a loon head and wings. 28 by 14 inches. $3200. (TUCSON)
At right is a Makwala (Moon) mask by Tim. Approximately 38 inches in diameter and inlaid with 345 pieces of abalone shell. $2400 (Tucson)
A Speakers mask, carved of alder by David Boxley. 9.5 inches high. $1800. (TUCSON)
David Boxley is a Tsimshian carver from Metlakatla, Alaska. Born in 1952, he was raised by his grandparents. From them he learned many Tsimshian traditions including the language. After high school he attended Seattle Pacific University where he received a Bachelor of Science degree in 1974. He became a teacher and basketball coach. While teaching in Metlakatla in 1979 he began devoting considerable time to the study of traditional Tsimshian carving.
In 1986 he left teaching and to devote all of his energies toward carving and researching the legacy of Northwest Coast Indian art becoming a nationally recognized artist.
In 1990, during the Goodwill Games Boxley was commissioned to carve the crown of a "Talking Stick." Boxley's carving of a unified American eagle and a Russian bear became a symbol of peace and harmony between the United States and Soviet Union and was an important part of the summer's Goodwill Games. Messages from President George Bush and Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev were inserted in a hollowed portion of the talking stick and athletes carried the stick from Spokane through Washington and Oregon to Seattle for the opening ceremonies.
