The Transforming Image, 2nd Edition: Painted Arts of Northwest Coast First Nations
Bill McLennan, Karen Duffek
In the two decades since its initial publication, The Transforming Image has become a must-have book for First Nations artists, who have found inspiration in its wealth of images and ideas, and for scholars and appreciators of Northwest Coast art. Including hundreds of photographs of Indigenous historical artworks, objects and belongings now widely dispersed in collections around the world, this new edition of its groundbreaking volume makes The Transforming Image, 2nd Edition, and its findings invaluable and accessible to all, yet again.
This book is an extraordinary result of the Museum of Anthropology’s Image Recovery Project, which used infrared photography to reveal paintings of historical Northwest Coast objects; visually obscured by the patina of age. The project assembled images of nearly 1,000 different paintings over its two-decade run and worked with contemporary First Nations artists to reconstruct the compositions and understand their original context and significance (which the authors discuss in their insightful and engaging commentary). These rediscovered artworks have radically deepened the understanding of Northwest Coast First Nations history and relationship to painting, including techniques, materials, imagery, and the creativity of generations of ancestor artists.
Originally written by authors Bill McLennan, and Karen Duffek (2000). In collaboration with the Museum of Anthropology, University of British Columbia.
In the two decades since its initial publication, The Transforming Image has become a must-have book for First Nations artists, who have found inspiration in its wealth of images and ideas, and for scholars and appreciators of Northwest Coast art. Including hundreds of photographs of Indigenous historical artworks, objects and belongings now widely dispersed in collections around the world, this new edition of its groundbreaking volume makes The Transforming Image, 2nd Edition, and its findings invaluable and accessible to all, yet again.
This book is an extraordinary result of the Museum of Anthropology’s Image Recovery Project, which used infrared photography to reveal paintings of historical Northwest Coast objects; visually obscured by the patina of age. The project assembled images of nearly 1,000 different paintings over its two-decade run and worked with contemporary First Nations artists to reconstruct the compositions and understand their original context and significance (which the authors discuss in their insightful and engaging commentary). These rediscovered artworks have radically deepened the understanding of Northwest Coast First Nations history and relationship to painting, including techniques, materials, imagery, and the creativity of generations of ancestor artists.
Originally written by authors Bill McLennan, and Karen Duffek (2000). In collaboration with the Museum of Anthropology, University of British Columbia.
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- Figure 1 Publishing (Oct, 2022)
- Hardcover, 312 pages
- 10.75 x 9"
Bill McLennan (1948–2020) was Curator, Pacific Northwest at MOA. His pioneering research with infrared photography resulted in the first rendition of The Transforming Image: Painted Arts of Northwest Coast First Nations (with Karen Duffek, 2000). This updated book and other achievements reflect his passion for researching the history and dynamics of Northwest Coast art, and for sharing his knowledge with others.
Karen Duffek is the Curator of Contemporary Visual Arts and Pacific Northwest at MOA. Committed to supporting the activation of Northwest Coast Indigenous collections inside and outside the museum, her research, exhibitions, and publications focus on the relationships between historical and contemporary art practices, museum collections, communities, and art markets.
