Giants Among Us is my response to the role of reconciliation between Indigenous Peoples and Settlers to this land. Contained in the entire image are four separate scenes, which reflect narratives about monsters and giants based in oral history from the Central Coast. The themes to be taken away from these scenes are Protection, Escape, Rejection, and Balance.
The image at the top is titled Raven Meets the Cannibal and the theme of this scene is Protection. The Raven in this scene is both human and bird figure. The Raven is known up and down the coast as a trickster, creator and hero or helper of the people. The figure to the right is known as Baxbaxwalanuksiwe or the Cannibal of the North Door. He is known for keeping humans captive and consuming them. This spirit of consumption can affect humans of all backgrounds. In this image the transformer Raven protects himself and returns the cannibalistic energy of greed and consumption back onto its purveyor.
The second scene down depicts Escape. The captive child spirit has found his way out of the basket of the giantess known as the Atsi. Stories of this giant reach up and down the coast, and she goes by many names. My grandfather, Johnny Hanuse, called her “Skwanee.” She is known to steal unsuspecting children as they wander too far from the village. Often in the stories told about her, it is the most overlooked child who devises the plan to elude her. This piece was made to honour all of the Residential School child escapees. Over the years I have heard heroic stories of successful and attempted escapes from these schools, and many more fled within their imaginations. The children wanted to go home.
The third scene down contains the story of Rejection. P'kvs also known as the Wildman of the Woods is a forest ghost who tries to charm the living into crossing over into the ghost world. He offers gifts, but they are not what they seem. I feel his spirit parallels many figures and entities we deal with in our world today. Many of us choose to cope with reality by accepting illusions, resulting in suffering and living as a ghost. This piece is a reminder to not fall into the false worlds or take in bad medicine.
The final scene at the bottom is the Sisiutl, or double-headed sea serpent also known as Winalagalis. What I learn from this monster is the gift of choice and the need for Balance. The choice to build or destroy, and the choice to love or to hate. This serpent was still feared by many and consumed those who were weak in moral strength, but the greater message of the Sisiutl is that it is a choice to be weak or strong in spirit and mind.
Although I have briefly described the scenes taking place, I also invite the viewer to construct their own narrative. When creating these designs I was conscious that children would be seeing them at bus stops. I wanted to create something that their imaginations could slip into. It is this ability to be free, to wonder, and to dream that was forcibly taken away by the Church and State-run Residential Schools, and it still a battle to hang on to our culture, languages and spiritual practice. I look to our stories for lessons on how to overcome the giants in our path.