Kiss the Sky House Post by Chris Paul
Visitors to the Gallery are greeted by a new acquisition on display in the AGGV lobby, a House Post entitled, Kiss the Sky (2015), by artist Chris Paul, and purchased with funds provided by the Art & Fare Fund for Indigenous Art in 2023. Chris Paul is Coast Salish from the Tsartlip Nation, near Brentwood Bay, British Columbia.
On the origins of the piece, in his artist statement, Chris Paul said, “Sea and Air comes from the story of Thunderbird (top part of post facing downward from the sky) and Killer Whale (facing upwards from the sea). It was my first entrance into mythology in a profound way; it was really significant in my life. One Being of the water and one Being of the sky and the stories that went along with it. I remember seeing a picture when I was quite young. It was a crude drawing, but enough for me and my imagination to take-off with and create a complete world around this Great Fight between the Killer Whale and the Thunderbird. It was like the first time that something way beyond myself was in my conscious.”
Image Credit: Chris Pail (Coast Salish), Kiss The Sky (House Post), 2015, carved reclaimed red cedar, polished/distressed acrylic paint, aluminum, overall 317.5 x 40.6 x 10.2cm, Purchased with funds from the Art and Fare Funds for Indigenous Art, AGGV 2023.004.01 (including detail on lower post and upper post).