Campus Ceremony – Indigenous Artist Ned Bear’s Pawakan Pole Moving to Indoor Space
11:00 AM
STU Campus – Upper Courtyard
The Pawakan Pole at STU, carved by nationally acclaimed Indigenous artist the late Ned Bear, is moving to a new indoor home during a special ceremony starting at 11 am on Thursday, November 27.
The Senate Committee on Reconciliation and the Wabanaki Centre invite everyone attend.
Carved from a 1,700-pound log salvaged after Tropical Storm Arthur, the beloved piece of art is being relocated indoors to the first floor of Brian Mulroney Hall. The relocation is necessary due to ongoing damage to the pole from extreme weather.
As part of a process to relocate the Pawakan Pole, Mi’kmaw artist Gordon Sparks has been involved as a leader in the restoration and ceremony efforts. Bear was an artistic mentor to Sparks at the time of the original carving.
Bear, a Cree and Wolastoqiyik educator and artist, took great care in carving this Pawakan Pole on campus in 2014 when he was an Artist-in-Residence in the Fine Arts Program. He expressed his desire for the pole to act as a support and a guide for Indigenous students at STU who embark on their journey toward higher education.
“Pawakan, loosely translated, means spirit guide or spirit helper,” Bear said in 2014.
“Normally, I would just carve a face in the tree and say, ‘this is Pawakan’s spirit and this is the spirit of the tree,’ but this one will be a little bit more elaborate.”
While Bear was at STU as an artist-in-residence, students also watched him carve masks as he explained his creative process.
About Ned Bear
Ned Bear was known for his sculptural works offering a contemporary interpretation of traditional First Nation spiritual beliefs. He expressed this in hand-carved masks as well as through his Land Art—sculptural works in a natural environment. He also sculpted figure-forms in natural materials such as marble and limestone.
An internationally renowned artist, Bear participated in numerous group and solo shows. In 2006, he won first prize at the prestigious Face the Nation competition at the UC Davis Design Museum in San Diego. He also held a fellowship at the Smithsonian Institute in New York City and a residency with the Gibraltar International Artist Residency at Toronto Island.
He worked in a co-operative project for the 2010 Winter Olympics, having participated with an Atlantic native Artists “Group of 10” on a free-standing public sculpture placed in Whistler, BC.
Bear also made significant contributions as a high school art teacher, a fine arts curator, a guest speaker, and fine arts juror. He served as the director of education for Ekpahaq First Nation community in Fredericton, and was a member of the New Brunswick Arts Board.