 The GIS logo was designed by Susan A. Pointe, a Coast Salish native artist. She was born in 1952
and lives in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. While in school she
occasionally spent time drawing and painting, but she did not become
seriously interested in art until she was 29, when she took a course
in silver jewelry making. The four-week course instantly inspired Susan
to try to be a silversmith. She has such extraordinary talent that her
success was immediate. Although Susan began producing fine art in precious
metals, serigraphs and acrylic paintings, she is now producing large-scale
public art in mediums including glass, wood, stainless steel and concrete.
Many of her works can be found in private and corporate collections
in over 20 countries around the world.
Like many other Northwest Coast artists, Susan worked in all of the styles of the coastal peoples before she concentrated on her Coast Salish identity. Anthropologist Michael Kew of the University of British Columbia encouraged Susan to find her own style and provided her with much useful information and slides about the traditional art of her people. Susan has since spent considerable time educating the public about traditional Coast Salish and has helped revive this nearly lost art form. In creating her art, she continually expresses her cultural background and beliefs, yet her work continues to evolve in concert with changes within and outside her community. |
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