With over two hundred serigraphs and paintings, Echoes of the Supernatural: The Graphic Art of Robert Davidson is an exhilarating tour of a half-century of mastery and innovation of Haida formline by the most prominent Northwest Coast artist of his generation.
We acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts.
Gary Wyatt represented master-level Northwest Coast, Inuit, and Maori artists for thirty-five years, including Robert Davidson from the late 1980s to 2020. He was curator of Northwest Coast Art for the Inuit Gallery of Vancouver for eight years, and co-founded the Spirit Wrestler Gallery in 1995. He has curated many ground-breaking exhibitions of contemporary Northwest Coast art, lectured extensively on the art form internationally, and authored several catalogues and books, including Susan Point: Works on Paper (2014), Seekers and Travellers: Contemporary Art of the Pacific Northwest Coast (2012), and Mythic Beings: Spirit Art of the Northwest Coast (1999).
More About Gary Wyatt
Robert Davidson is a leading figure in the renaissance of Haida art and culture, and is among the most acclaimed artists in Canada. Over the past five decades, his works in a variety of mediums—including painting, serigraphs, carved argillite and wood, aluminum sculpture, and silver jewellery—have earned him numerous awards, including the Governor General’s Award for Visual Arts and the Audain Prize for Lifetime Achievement. He is a Member of the Order of B.C. and an Officer of the Order of Canada, and holds many honourary degrees from universities in Canada and the U.S. He has hosted many potlatches and feasts in Haida Gwaii, and co-founded the Rainbow Creek Dancers (with Reg Davidson) and the Haida Gwaii Singers Society (started by Terri-Lynn Williams-Davidson). Davidson lives and works in White Rock, B.C., and his home community of Old Masset, Haida Gwaii.
More About Robert Davidson
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Windspeaker
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Globe and Mail
“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
Robert Davidson’s graphic work celebrated with new VAG show and stunning book.
Vancouver Sun
“The book by Gary Wyatt and Davidson from Figure 1 Publishing in collaboration with the [Vancouver Art Gallery], is a stunning and interesting collection of Davidson’s prints, paintings, and drawings.”
Calgary Herald
“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
“Robert Davidson is an international star and a national treasure, full stop.”
Gift guide 2o22: Five B.C. books worth giving this holiday season
Vancouver Sun
“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
“The book is a visual marvel, with its bold colours and the dramatic curves of Haida formline, aspects that are incorporated into its design, including the stunning cover.”
Art Books 2022
Galleries West
“A stunning and interesting collection of Davidson’s prints, paintings, and drawings.”
Calgary Herald
BC Bestsellers
Read Local BC
“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
“Robert Davidson is a modern master who helped spark a renaissance.”
Vancouver Sun
Writing the Coast Podcast
“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
Film Screening of “Haida Modern” with Robert Davidson
James Cowan Theatre, Vancouver
Friday, October 13, 2023
6:30 PM–9:30 PM