Área de identidad
Tipo de entidad
Persona
Forma autorizada del nombre
Chief Henry Speck
Forma(s) paralela(s) de nombre
Forma(s) normalizada del nombre, de acuerdo a otras reglas
Otra(s) forma(s) de nombre
- Ozistalis
Identificadores para instituciones
Área de descripción
Fechas de existencia
1908-1971
Historia
Ozistalis (Chief Henry Speck) worked as a fisherman, dancer, and song writer. He became chief of the Tlawitsis Nation when he succeeded his father. In the early 1960s, he became artistic director of the Kwakiutl House Project in Alert Bay, where he also pursued his artistic skills; he taught carving and dancing in Alert Bay. "His unique approach to Kwakwaka'wakw design opened a new range of possibilities for a generation of artists" (Ayotte, Gallery of Tribal Art, 1995). He was commissioned by Gyula Mayer, a Vancouver art and antiques dealer, who was interested in collecting Northwest Coast pieces for his gallery; it was Mayer who encouraged Speck to paint with watercolours. Many of these paintings by Speck and other artists at the time were sold to private collectors, museums, or were collected by Mayer. "...Speck's paintings speak to the viewer with a clarity and a sense of immediacy. A striking aspect of Speck's work is its ability to invoke a three-dimensional "space" within the confines of a limited design field" (Ayotte, 1995).