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| Beaver and the Mink (Part one of two)
09/85 Susan A. Point Edition: 14/50 Silkscreen © Copyright 1985 Susan A. Point. All Rights Reserved. |
Beaver and the Mink II (Part two of two) 02/88 Susan A. Point Photolithograph © Copyright 1988 Susan A. Point. All Rights Reserved. |
These two images are based on the Salish legend of the Beaver and the Mink.
The tale explains how the beaver and the mink caused the Salmon people to live
in the rivers rather than in their longhouses on the shore. In the first print,
the beaver (on the right) and the mink (on the left) mirror each other within the
bodies of two spiraling salmon. The spinning motion of the two fish is accentuated
both by their swirling forms and the trigons that appear behind their fins and tails.
Beaver and the Mink II expands upon the design of the first with the inclusion
of two figures paddling a canoe beneath the swirling salmon. The two figures are beaver
and mink, paddling to shore to see the Salmon people. The color pallet of the print has
changed as well. Susan has changed from the reds, browns, and tans of her earlier prints
to a pallet that includes blues, pinks, and greens. The vibrancy created between the blues
and the pinks creates a visual texture within the image, adding another layer of complexity
to Susan's print. Again, Susan brings together experimentation and tradition in her prints,
making a contemporary artistic statement that relies on traditional Coast Salish design
principles and legends for its inspiration.
(Beaver and the Mink II was originally commissioned by the Public Service Commission
of Canada in Toronto for a calendar design. Subsequently, copies were run off as
photolithograph prints. Posters were also made of the image.)
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