Mungo Martin

Chief Mungo Martin or Nakapenkim (meaning a potlatch chief "ten times over"), Datsa (meaning "grandfather"), was a noted expert in the Northwest Coast style of artwork, a singer, and a songwriter. Example of Northwest Coast art Northwest Coast art is the term commonly applied to a style of art created primarily by artists from Tlingit, Haida, Tsimshian, Kwakwakawakw and Nuu-chah-nulth First Nations of the northwest coast of North America, from pre-European-contact times up to the present. ...

Early life

Martin was born in 1879 in Fort Rupert, British Columbia, to parents that were members of the Kwakwaka'wakw) Nation. While still young, he was a regular participant in rituals, songs, arts, and traditions of the local Kwakwaka'wakw and North Coastal culture. This formed the basis of his knowledge of the Northwest Coast style, and he applied it to designing, carving, and painting. Motto: Splendor sine occasu (Latin: Splendour without diminishment) Capital Victoria Largest city Vancouver Official languages English (de facto) Government Lieutenant-Governor Steven Point Premier Gordon Campbell (BC Liberal) Federal representation in Canadian Parliament House seats 36 Senate seats 6 Confederation July 20, 1871 (6th province) Area  Ranked 5th Total 944... Kwakwakawakw girl wearing abalone shell earings. ...

Professional Life

Wawadit'la, also known as Mungo Martin House, a Kwakwaka'wakw "big house", with heraldic pole. Built by Chief Mungo Martin in 1953. Located at Thunderbird Park in Victoria, British Columbia.Thunderbird Park – A Place of Cultural Sharing. Royal British Columbia Museum. Retrieved on 2006-06-24.

Charlie James, a famous Northwestern artist and Martin's stepfather, eventually guided Martin into the NW Coastal Art scene, acting as his mentor and expanding his learning in of the arts in general. Martin went on to become one of the first traditional artists to deal with many types of Northwest Coast sculptural and painting styles. He carved his first commissed totem pole in Alert Bay c1900, and titled it "Raven of the Sea." Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 800 × 560 pixelsFull resolution (10000 × 7000 pixel, file size: 19. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 800 × 560 pixelsFull resolution (10000 × 7000 pixel, file size: 19. ... A Gitxsan pole (left) and Kwakwakawakw pole (right) at Thunderbird Park in Victoria, British Columbia. ... Thunderbird Park is a park in Victoria, British Columbia located next to the Royal British Columbia Museum. ... This article is about the city of Victoria. ... Historical museum located in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 175th day of the year (176th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Charles Wesley James (December 22, 1937 in St. ... For other uses , see Painting (disambiguation). ... Alert Bay is a small community on Cormorant Island, British Columbia, Canada. ...

Martin was responsible for the restoration and repair of many carvings and sculptures, totem poles, masks, and various other ceremonial objects. Martin also gained fame for holding the first public potlatch since the governmental potlatch ban of 1889. For this, he was awarded with a medal by the Canadian Council.^[1] For other uses, see Potlatch (disambiguation). ...

He also acted as a tutor to his son-in-law Henry Hunt and grandson Tony Hunt. His grandsons Stanley Hunt and Richard Hunt are also professional carvers. Henry Hunt (b. ... Tony Hunt (b. ...

Later work and death

House built by Mungo Martin and David Martin with carpenter Robert J. Wallace. Based on Chief Nakap'ankam's house in Tsaxis (Fort Rupert). The house "bears on its house-posts the hereditary crests of Martin's family." It continues to be used for ceremonies with the permission of Chief Oast'akalagalis 'Walas 'Namugwis (Peter Knox, Martin's grandson) and Mable Knox.

Pole carved by Mungo Martin, David Martin and Mildred Hunt. "Rather than display his own crests on the pole, which was customary, Martin chose to include crests representing the A'wa'etlala, Kwagu'l, 'Nak'waxda'xw and 'Namgis Nations. In this way, the pole represents and honours all the Kwakwaka'wakw people."

Martin was hired in 1952 by the Royal British Columbia Museum in Victoria, British Columbia to create works of Northwest Coastal Art as display pieces and examples. The final result was a huge totem pole, carved out of cedar, standing 160 feet tall. It was raised in 1956 and remained standing until 2000. ^[2] He also constructed the Wawadit'la, a Kwakwaka'wakw "big house", at Thunderbird Park in front of the museum. Historical museum located in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. ... This article is about the city of Victoria. ... A Gitxsan pole (left) and Kwakwakawakw pole (right) at Thunderbird Park in Victoria, British Columbia. ... Thunderbird Park is a park in Victoria, British Columbia located next to the Royal British Columbia Museum. ...

Martin was significant in the Northwest Coastal Art scene for his vast amount of work and actual sculpting. He also was one of the first collectors of Northwest Coast Art, and as a result many museums in the Northwest began their collections under his aegis. He died in 1962 at the age of 83.

References

1. ^ Encyclopedia of minorities in American politics. Jeffrey D. Schultz. 2000 Greenwood Press. ISBN 1573561487
2. ^ Seasons in the Rain. Silver Donald. ISBN 0771018479

• Mungo Martin a slender thread: The legacy , by Barb Cranmer
• About Martin
• Ask Art Biography

• * Macnair, Peter L., Alan L. Hoover, and Kevin Neary (1984) The Legacy: Tradition and Innovation in Northwest Coast Indian Art. Vancouver, B.C.: Douglas & McIntyre.