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Pacific Northwest Native Americans – A Brief History |
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The peopling of the America's was accomplished over a very long period of time through successive waves of immigration going back several millennia. Striking mosaics of most varied cultures can be seen reflecting intensive contacts across the pacific where multiple heritages with diverse linguistic roots contributed different elements of art and culture. Universally shared implements and technologies are found along with endless other cultural traits originating in Asia, Oceania and even the Mediterranean according to some scholars. The earliest immigrants were predominantly Australoid people who were succeeded by Asiatic Negroids and northern Mongoloids. They were followed by waves of new immigrants arriving by sea, and land bridges who settled on the Pacific shores. Some Pacific Northwest Indian populations retained many of the archaic traits they brought with them. A striking example of such is the Salish art and culture of southwest Alaska, British Columbia and the Salish sea. Living in a climate suffused with ancient influences, including those of pre-Buddhist China. They developed and elaborated their art until it reached a characteristic highly individual personality and style. It retains an Asiatic flavor, and is strongly reminiscent of south Pacific Polynesian and Melanesian art. It communicates knowledge of primal unity with the events and phenomena of nature. The Pacific Northwest has a tremendous abundance of natural resources – of forest, intertidal and inland seas flora and fauna. First people hunted and gathered edibles and extensively utilized plant material and parts of animals in various technologies and arts. With the necessities of life provided for, leisure time enabled indigenous people to evolve a fabulous body of visual art. It is an inspiring archive expressing great mystery, vitality, fantastic artisanship and innovation. It has an aesthetic quality that transcends regional boundaries and may be regarded as having an intimacy and meaning universal to mankind. The Salish people produced monuments in miniature with vital rhythm infused with legendary beings – compositions that dance and transform with layers of zoomorphic and mythological abstraction and liveliness. Salish artists often however bring very individualistic personal vision to their creations – their own eccentricity. They may not be easily dissected iconographically or symbolically analyzed as some contemporary observers do with more northerly Haida and Tlinget artwork.
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