Art at YVR

Travelers arriving from the United States reach the Pacific Passage through a traditionally constructed post-and-beam longhouse doorway, emerging into a typically North Coast world of sandy beaches and gentle waves breaking against rugged landscapes. This environment is a compelling setting for the unique works displayed here.

In the Pacific Passage, travelers are greeted with an authentic Northwest Coast experience. Each piece in the collection offers a singular expression of Northwest Coast Aboriginal art.

Soaring above the installation is Hetux,Thunderbird, Keeper of the Sky, an imposing sculpture by Connie Watts. Watts' family heritage includes the Nuu-cha-nulth, Kwakwaka'wakw and Gitxsan First Nations. Hetux spans 6.4 metres wide from wing tip to wing tip, 5.23 metres long, and 4.5 metres high. The sculpture takes its name and inspiration from Watts' grandmother. The sculpture portrays the many qualities of her grandmother – strength, creativity, generosity, joy, energy, power and fortuity.

Tim Pauls' red cedar whaling canoe, commissioned by the YVRAF and completed in 1997, signifies the human journey. The 12.3 metre long Rainbow off the Beach calls on a family history of traditional canoe making. The canoe's design depicts the great sea serpent, Sisiutl. The face is the moon and on the other side the script, "our ancestor gone before us" is carved.

Pacific Passage also features Haisla artist Lyle Wilson's Origin of Light. This polished aluminum and glass disk represents the point at which Wee-Git – the trickster Raven of Tsimshian, Gitxsan and Nisga'a legend – releases the ball of light that marks the transition in history from darkness to enough light for people to see, think, discuss and record.

Carvings by Stephen Bruce, a member of the Namgis tribe (Kwakwaka'waka) bring life to the shoreline of Pacific Passage. The tradition of carving animals and birds, from which Bruce draws inspiration, began as representations of family crests and evolved over the centuries. Carved from red cedar, Bruce's creatures are from the time when animals shed their skins and transformed into humans.