Several small sculptures of late Haida artist, Bill Reid, were stolen from the University of British Columbia’s Museum of Anthropology over the weekend, including this lovely piece:
Reid, Bill. Box, 1967. Gold. UBC Museum of Anthropology. MOA ID: Nb1.717 a-b. Image copyright the UBC Museum of Anthropology.
For those of you who may not be familiar with Reid’s work (although chances are if you’ve been to Canada recently, you’ve handled an image of his work: his sculpture The Spirit of Haida Gwaii appears on the back of the Canadian 20-dollar bill, the original sculpture stands in the Canadian Embassy in Washington, DC) he is one of Canada’s most celebrated artists.
The son of a Haida mother and father of European descent, Reid was born in British Columbia and was raised in a mainly white world until a trip to his mother’s home village of Skidgate in his early adulthood. It would be a life-altering experience for the young man who learned that his maternal grandfather had been a traditional Haida carver and modern silversmith. After a career detour to become a radio announcer for the CBC, Reid, who had shown artistic abilities and an interest in carving from childhood, took a course in jewellery making and design while working for the CBC in Toronto. When he returned to British Columbia, he set up his own jewellery shop in his basement and immersed himself in his Haida roots. He became involved in Haida art salvage and restoration projects through the University of British Columbia and used the time to study the art forms of his ancestors. Over a career that would span five decades, Reid would help revive what had become a near dead art form: Haida carving and design. Reid died in 1998 after a lengthy battle with Parkinson’s disease.
The work stolen from the University of British Columbia Museum are described as “priceless” and the theft as a “crime against all Canadians”. Speculation has included the sobering thought that the thieves may have stolen the works to melt them down for their value as a precious metal.
A complete list of the items, including three Mexican pieces, can be found on the CBC website where they also have a slide show of the stolen works.
