Title: Where the people gather
First published: 1992
Description: The totem pole - in all its powerful beauty is a distinctive and widely recognized form of traditional native art that is alive and thriving today. Where the People Gather is the first book to document the entire process of carving a pole. It begins with, renowned Nisga'a artist Norman Tait's inspection of the raw cedar log and ends with the raising of the 42-foot completed pole three months later. This totem pole is named Wil Sayt Bakwhlgat, which means "the place where the people gather.".

As Tait teaches his apprentices, carving a pole involves more than time and labour, tools and techniques, artistic and emotional commitment; it involves their cultural background and being. The apprentices must make their own carving tools, design their regalia, and practice traditional songs, dances and drumming for the pole-raising ceremony.

Through an intimate text and 125 photographs, Vickie Jensen captures the atmosphere in which the pole is carved - the carving shed, cedar chips, blistered hands and long days - and celebrates its completion.
Subjects: Rites and ceremonies, Niska sculpture, Totem poles, Niska wood-carving, Niska Indians, Pictorial works, Totemisme, Indianen, Houtbewerking, Mâts totémique, Niska (Indiens), Sculpture sur bois niska, Wappenpfahl, Holzschnitzerei, Nisga'a wood-carving, Totems, Sculpture sur bois nisga'a, Sculpture sur bois indienne d'Amérique, Ouvrages illustrés, Wood-carving, Indians of north america, rites and ceremonies, Indian sculpture, north america, Sculpture
Places: British Columbia
People: Norman Tait (1941-)