Port Townsend Wooden Boat Festival 2024

 A New Era of Masted Haida Canoes 
Haida canoes endured colonization and are justifiably celebrated for exceptional craftsmanship. The seafaring prowess of these canoes and their navigators connected the Haida with the ocean and facilitated trade, communication, and cultural exchange for generations. Masted ocean-going canoes are referenced historically, and this project brings together the creation of a new masted canoe of old-growth cedar with the making of cedar sails. The process of linking exacting carving skills, the piecing together of nearly-lost knowledge legacies, and the contributions of numerous community members, young and old, is making this ambitious project advance the Haida’s vital seafaring heritage. Guujaaw and his son Jaalen Edenshaw, who are internationally acknowledged as master carvers and culture bearers, will share both the cultural technologies and the significance of this project.

Co-Presenter: Guujaaw (Gidansda) Edenshaw