University of Victoria Art Collections

Ditidaht

The Ditidaht people come from an amalgamation of at least ten groups of peoples on the west coast of Vancouver Island in British Columbia. The names of these groups were determined by village site and the designation for their group as a whole is diitii7aa7tx or Ditidaht. These villages include some of the following: Tsakkawis, Tl’aadiiwa, tsuxwkwaada (or Tsuquanah), da7uuw7aa (Iktuksasuk, anglicized from hitats’aasak), waayaa (locally known as Nitinat and in English Whyac), tluu7uus (Clo-oose), wawaax7adi7s, and kwaabaaduwa7 (Carmanah). The territory of the Ditidaht people “stretches from inland at Cowichan Lake and down to Nitinat Lake… along the coast from Bonilla Point and Pachena Point.” This territory also stretches offshore into the Pacific Ocean, which has served as a sustenance and economy building resource for the Ditidaht people since time immemorial. The diitii7aa7tx language is closely related to Makah and Nuu-chah-nulth, which are part of the southern Wakashan language group.1

The Ditidaht collection in the University of Victoria's Art Collections includes a large selection of prints and carvings by acclaimed artist Art Thompson or Tsan-Quass-Upp. Thompson is an accomplished self-taught artist and is widely known as a Nuu-chah-nulth master carver. One of the sculptural works in the collection, Dididaht Legend of Swan and Wolves, shows Thompson's aptitude for wonderfully detailed work, rich in his culture's traditions and stories.

Above References:

1 The Ditidaht First Nation http://www.ditidaht.ca/history.htm

View Pieces (165)

Thunderbird Eating A Whale Thompson, Art (Tsan-Quass-Upp) b.1948-2003

Pook-Ubs Thompson, Art (Tsan-Quass-Upp) b.1948-2003

Salmon Thompson, Art (Tsan-Quass-Upp) b.1948-2003

My Family   Thompson, Art (Tsan-Quass-Upp) b.1948-2003
Our Beginings   Thompson, Art (Tsan-Quass-Upp) b.1948-2003
Untitled; Paddle; Thunderbir...   Thompson, Art (Tsan-Quass-Upp) b.1948-2003

Northern Style Shaman; Mask Thompson, Art (Tsan-Quass-Upp) b.1948-2003

Dididaht Legend of Swans and... Thompson, Art (Tsan-Quass-Upp) b.1948-2003

Birth Announcement Thompson, Art (Tsan-Quass-Upp) b.1948-2003

Eagle And Ditidaht Salmon Thompson, Art (Tsan-Quass-Upp) b.1948-2003

Kwaht Yahts Gift Thompson, Art (Tsan-Quass-Upp) b.1948-2003
New Moon Thompson, Art (Tsan-Quass-Upp) b.1948-2003

Our Beginnings Thompson, Art (Tsan-Quass-Upp) b.1948-2003

Shaman And Frog Thompson, Art (Tsan-Quass-Upp) b.1948-2003
Twin Eagles Thompson, Art (Tsan-Quass-Upp) b.1948-2003

Twin Humans Thompson, Art (Tsan-Quass-Upp) b.1948-2003

Twin Killer Whales Thompson, Art (Tsan-Quass-Upp) b.1948-2003

Twin Wolves Thompson, Art (Tsan-Quass-Upp) b.1948-2003

Untitled Thompson, Art (Tsan-Quass-Upp) b.1948-2003

A Tribute To My Grandmother Thompson, Art (Tsan-Quass-Upp) b.1948-2003

Ah-Diss (Crane-Fog Maker) Thompson, Art (Tsan-Quass-Upp) b.1948-2003

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