b. 1948, Telegraph Creek, British Columbia
First Nations Affiliation: Tlingit

Trained by his parents and grandparents (and briefly at the Kitanmax School of Northwest Coast Art, Ksan, British Columbia), Dempsey Bob has contributed to a revival of both Northwest Coast visual arts and ceremonies, which have brought commissions for regalia such as frontlets, leggings, and button blankets. In making the latter, Bob teaches community children, ensuring the continuation of their culture. His preferred medium, woodcarving, is traditionally conservative and rule-governed; yet Bob both believes and demonstrates that historical study is the necessary base for innovative reinterpretations which are both timely and resonant.

R E C E N T   E X H I B I T I O N S

S E L E C T E D   C O L L E C T I O N S

British Columbia House, London England
Canada House, London, England
Canadian Museum of Civilization, Hull, Québec
Centennial Museum, Ketchikan, Alaska
Hamburgisches Museum fur Volkerskunde, Hamburg, Germany
Indian and Northern Affairs Canada, Ottawa, Ontario
City of Ketchikan, Alaska
University of BC Museum of Anthropology, Vancouver, British Columbia
Museum of Ethnology, Osaka, Japan
Museum of Northern British Columbia, Prince Rupert, British Columbia
National Museum, Osaka, Japan
Owase Community Cultural Centre, Owase, Japan
Ridley Island Grain Terminal, Prince Rupert, British Columbia
Royal British Columbia Museum, Victoria, British Columbia
Saxman Tribal House, Saxman, Alaska
Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C.

S E L E C T E D   B I B L I O G R A P H Y

Bayless, Alan. "The big money in west coast Native art." Financial Times of Canada 82, no.4 (28 August 1993): 4-5.

Dean, Misao. "What's in a name? By way of apology to Dempsey Bob." Canadian Forum 72, no. 819 (May 1993): 29-30.

Enright, Robert. "The sky is the limit: Conversations with First Nations artists." Border Crossings 11, no. 4 (1992): 46-57.

Macnair, Peter, Alan Hoover, and Kevin Neary. The Legacy: Tradition and Innovation in Northwest Coast Indian Art. Vancouver, British Columbia: Douglas & McIntyre, 1984. Originally published: Victoria, BC: British Columbia
Provincial Museum, 1980.

Nemiroff, Diana, Robert Houle, and Charlotte Townsend-Gault. Land, Spirit, Power: First Nations at the National Gallery of Canada. Ottawa, Ontario: National Gallery of Canada, 1992.

Review: Vancouver Museum. Vancouver Sun, 10 July 1993, p. C9.

Review: Grace Gallery. Vancouver Sun, 25 November 1989, p. D12.

The Smart one: Dempsey Bob. Produced by Seaton Productions Inc. Markham, Ontario: Seaton Productions, 1995. [videorecording]

Steltzer, Ullie. Indian Artists at Work. Vancouver, British Columbia: J.J. Douglas, 1976.

Tétrault, Pierre-Léon, Dana Alan Williams, Guy Sioui Durand, Alfred Young Man, et al. New Territories: 350/500 Years After: An Exhibition of Contemporary Aboriginal Art of Canada. Prefaces by Robert Houle, Tom Hill. Montréal, Québec: Ateliers Vision planétaire, 1992.

Vancouver Art Gallery. Topographies: Aspects of Recent British Columbia Art. Vancouver, British Columbia: Douglas & McIntyre, 1996.