Kwakwaka’wakw Totem Pole Raised at the Japanese National Museum of Ethnology
Campbell River, Canada / Turtle Island and Osaka, Japan In preparation for the opening of Japan’s National Ainu Museum in April 2020, the National Museum of Ethnology (called ‘Minpaku’) wanted to present an exhibition of Indigenous art. They commissioned the Kwakwaka’wakw carver Bill Henderson of the Wei Wai Kum Nation in Campbell River to construct a traditional totem pole to be sent to Japan. The pole depicts an eagle, sisiutl (sea serpent), a grizzly bear, and a salmon, which evoked Henderson’s family history and Campbell River’s fishing industry. Professors and administrators from Minpaku visited Campbell River to view the totem pole before it was shipped to Osaka, and erected on June 24, 2020. The resulting exhibition, “Treasures of Indigenous Peoples”, featured Ainu artwork alongside Indigenous works from Taiwan (Tao), Guatemala (Maya), and Canada (Coast Salish). People Bill Henderson, Wei Wai Kum artist Nations Kwakwaka’wakw (Wei Wai Kum) Organisations Wei Wai Kum Band Council National Museum of Ethnology Sources Scott Harrison. (November 17, 2018) Enhancing Trans-Pacific People-to-People Ties: Japan-Canada Twinning (Sister) Relationships. Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada
Ainu Dance Troupe Visit Campbell River
Campbell River, Canada / Turtle Island In April 1985, Masatoshi Sawai and ten other members of the Ainu Dance Troupe took a 12-day tour of British Columbia. They visited Campbell River and met Kwakwaka’wakw elders of the Wei Wai Kum nation. Sawai, who also worked for the Sapporo-Ainu Cultural Association, spoke to the New Canadian newspaper about the discrimination faced by Ainu in Japan. People Masatoshi Sawai, Ainu artist Nations Ainu Kwakwaka’wakw (Wei Wai Kum) Organisations Ainu Dance Troupe Sapporo-Ainu Cultural Association Sources New Canadian. (April 19, 1983) B.C. visit is cultural link with original people