Shore to Shore

Stanley Park, Vancouver, September 2014. A fourteen-foot bronze-cast cedar sculpture is being erected. Dignitaries from all levels of government are present, including leaders of the Coast Salish First Nations and representatives from Portugal’s Azores Islands. Luke Marston, carver/artist, supervises as his three-year project is revealed to the world.

The sculpture-titled Shore to Shore-depicts Luke’s great-great-grandparents, Portuguese Joe Silvey, one of BC’s most colourful pioneers, and Kwatleematt (Lucy), a Sechelt First Nation matriarch and Silvey’s second wife. Silvey and Kwatleematt are flanked by Khaltinaht, Silvey’s first wife, a noblewoman from the Musqueam and Squamish First Nations. The trio are surrounded by the tools of Silvey’s trade: seine nets, whaling harpoons, and the Pacific coast salmon that helped the family thrive in the early industries of BC. The sculpture references the multicultural relationships that are at the foundation of BC, while also showcasing the talents of one of Canada’s finest contemporary First Nations carvers.

Combining interviews, research and creative non-fiction narration, author Suzanne Fournier recounts Marston’s career, from his early beginnings carving totems for the public at the Royal BC Museum, to his study under Haida artist Robert Davidson and jewellery master Valentin Yotkov, to his visits to both his ancestral homes: Reid Island and the Portuguese Azores island of Pico-journeys which provided inspiration for the Shore to Shore statue.