Echoes of the Supernatural - by Gary Wyatt (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

Finalist for the Roderick Haig-Brown Regional Prize, a BC & Yukon Book Prize

Since leaving Haida Gwaii to study art in Vancouver--where he carved argillite with Bill Reid in a department store and hand-sold prints on the UBC campus--Guud sans glans, Robert Davidson has moved between two worlds. As a host of Potlatches, carver of masks and totem poles, and performer and teacher of traditional Haida songs and dances, he has been one of the driving forces in the resurgence of Haida culture in the aftermath of colonization. As an artist working in serigraphs, acrylic, wood, silver, and aluminum to preserve and breathe new life into Haida formline, he has become among the most respected, celebrated, and thrilling artists in the country, if not the world.

Echoes of the Supernatural is the first publication in over forty years to offer a comprehensive visual retrospective of his astonishing career. It includes new photography of over 150 prints, as well as images of over fifty paintings; numerous painted woven hats, painted and carved sculptures, jewellery, aluminum sculpture; and dozens of archival photos. His long-time gallerist Gary Wyatt, who worked closely with Davidson in shaping the book and received full access to his archives, details the artist's life and career, and offers insights on the work based on extensive new interviews. A foreword by Karen Duffek situates the contours of Davidson's practice within the broader Northwest Coast art world.

Review Quotes

"This singularly gorgeous book showcases the extraordinary work of Guud San Glans Robert Davidson, one of the world's most innovative and influential contemporary Indigenous artists. Echoes of the Supernatural is art publishing at its best, delivering a volume of breath-taking textual and print quality"
--British Columbia Review

"Since the 1960s, Guud san glans Robert Davidson has been instrumental in the renaissance of Haida art and culture and has long been appreciated as one of the most inventive artists working within Haida artistic traditions."
--Broadway World

"A stunning and interesting collection of Davidson's prints, paintings, and drawings."
--Calgary Herald

"Robert Davidson is a modern master who helped spark a renaissance."
--Vancouver Sun

"Davidson described his role in the resurgence of Northwest Coast art and culture as one of not only solving the 'puzzle, ' but of bringing it back."
--Stir

"A big and bountiful book, by independent writer and curator Gary Wyatt, it is jointly published by the VAG and Figure.1--not as a catalogue to the show but as a separate and distinct record of Davidson's astounding achievements in two-dimensional art forms."
--Preview Art Magazine

"The artist's contributions greatly enrich the narrative content providing interpretive insight, a measured and intelligent commentary and, importantly, a critical perspective on his practice."
--BC Studies