YUQUOT CARVING SHOP
Yuquot, Nootka Island, BC
Ahtsik-sta Qwayachiik : buwits’hah mah’de
”The Artistic Wolf: Dream House”
Lock up | Fall 2021
Skylight Ridge
Progress before winter storms.
SUMMER 2021
The siting of the new carving shop, next to Sanford’s father, Ray’s house.
location
The territories of the Mowachaht and Muchalaht First Nations encompass the majority of the Tahsis Inlet, Nootka Island, and the surrounding lands.
The southern-most coast of Nootka Island is where the Village of Yuquot once thrived, but since the arrival of Captain Cook and the Spaniards, has undergone massive transition and loss of a traditional way of life. I am not a historian, and I do not know all the stories, so I will suffice with the current spectrum. Of course, there is the light house sitting on the very edge of the land, and the old Church that stands facing the Southwest, where Captain cook made his first landing on the West Coast. But, I have seen that the Village of Yuquot now sits in a tentative balance of Salmon berry, Thimble berry, blackberry, and Elderberry overgrowth, and the Mowachaht band and Ray Williams’ intention of Staying. This intention is finding foothold in Ray’s two sons, Darryl and Sanford.
“Yuquot: Where the wind blows from all directions”.
“Yuquot is ideally located between land and sea, between the outside and inside, between the abundance and energy of the ocean, and the majesty and richness of the forest and the inlets of Nootka Sound. Outside, the open Pacific, there are abundant whales, sea lions and seals, and fishing banks for halibut, cod and salmon.”
From The Yuquot, Mowachaht/Muchalaht First Nation website.
My client is Sanford Williams, who asked if I could help with his Carving Shop dream.
The Drawings
Entering into a plan that is already in motion, is a test of balance. In this case, remote-site conditions and material scarcity directed logistics.
The Log Ridge
Where there is material, there is a way, and tradition is the method.
Gratitude
Thank you to the land that has been here and will be until we all pass our existence to the next.
Thank you to the people who agreed to do the work, especially the Williams family for taking on the intent.
Thank you to the way of designing for connection.