Mungo Martin

(b Fort Rupert, BC, c. 1879; d 16 Aug 1962). Native Canadian Kwakiutl chief and sculptor. As a child he exercised his dexterity with a knife and adze, was apprenticed to CHARLIE JAMES and learnt the traditional values and totemic skills of Kwakiutl culture (see fig.). He married Abayah (Tlakawakilayokwai), and the two united effectively in their efforts to preserve the fast disappearing traditional way of life of the Kwakiutl people. In 1921 the Canadian government launched a drive against the potlatch (a rank confirmation ceremony in which goods are distributed as gifts and sometimes also deliberately destroyed) and seized the bulk of the tribe's inherited possessions, jailing many of the people who had participated. A reversal of the policy in the late 1940s made a dramatic change in native life, and Martin was invited in 1950 to oversee the restoration programme at the University of British Columbia, a responsibility he eagerly accepted. He and his wife guided this renaissance in native arts and culture for many years, working at Thunderbird Park, Victoria, until his death. Not only a master sculptor, Martin was also an outstanding teacher and tribal historian. One of his major creations was the 39 m-high Beacon Hill pole, one of the tallest extant. He was also commissioned to carve a ceremonial pole honouring the centennial visit of Queen Elizabeth II in 1958; this is 30.48 m tall and stands in Thunderbird Park. Martin drowned tragically in 1962.

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