Art and Reconciliation

In this interactive and intimate workshop, Cory Douglas (Modern Formline) will explain the defining characteristics of Formline art and teach how to discern the differences and commonalities of Coast Salish art forms from the larger family of Formline art forms. He will also explore opportunities for cultural integration of these teachings.

Learning objectives:

1. With the initial stage of the presentation, participants will be able to explain defining characteristics of Formline art, a feature in the Indigenous art of the Northwest Coast of North America.
2. Through exposure to the art and cultural knowledge within the unceded territories of the Musqueam/Squamish/Tsleil-Waututh, participants will discern differences and commonalities of Coast Salish from the larger family of Formline art forms.

There are many examples where the history of the First Nations to Canada is being recognized. Two that immediately come to mind are when the Government of Canada issued an apology for the Residential School Survivors and when the City of Vancouver declared that it is on unceded territory, implementing a "City of Reconciliation" and "Unceded Territories of the Coast Salish".

The decolonization of our territory begins with understanding the differences of Coast Salish and Formline art forms. Respectfully the City of Vancouver has proudly indigenized the city, celebrating the rich multicultural society we live in, but it is time to bring the Coast Salish to its rightful place: at the forefront. The opportunity is now for cultural integration with developers, architects, and professionals alike.

About the presenter:

Since 2006, Cory Douglas has endeavoured to develop his ancestors' roots in artistry and continue to redefine himself as he merges his academic architectural vocation with his innate creativity. Together, mixed with his passion for detail, this marriage has come alive into what Cory defines as "Modern Formline". Every creation first begins as a vision, followed by a sketch, as the piece merges into its personality and manifests on jewellery, paper, drums, bentwood boxes, and tattoos. 

As Cory says, “I like the idea of freeing my images from the traditional two-dimensional surface of a crest and complimenting them with colour gradations and sketching them in three dimensional forms.”

His late grandfather Teddy Brown belonged to both ‘Killer Whale’ and ‘Eagle’ clans with the Tsimshian and Haida respectively. He is connected to the Squamish Nation through his mother and father.

As an apprentice to Jordan Seward and Aaron Nelson Moody, Cory has been studying traditional Haida form and Formline and Coast Salish design respectfully. He graduated from the Northwest Coast Jewellery Arts Program (2011), taught by Dan Wallace. He currently teaches the fundamentals of design, composition, and engraving at Native Education College in Vancouver.