Whakakai Ovoid – Whero

Vina Brown (Haíłzaqv, Nuučaan̓uɫ) refers to herself as a mother, beader, weaver, and scholar. She is based in Lummi Reservation in Coast Salish Territory (Washington State on the North West Coast). Her ancestral name is ƛ̓áqvas gḷ́w̓aqs, which roughly translates to ‘Copper Canoe Woman’, the name given to her bespoke traditional and visionary jewellery business. Vina creates statement pieces infused with elements of her coastal Indigenous culture and identity which have featured as accessories on runways such as the New York Fashion Week, Santa Fe Native Fashion Week, and most recently the Vancouver Indigenous Fashion Week. The team of Copper Canoe Woman choose every day to honour the earth, and they showcase this through their designs. One of their core beliefs is that we are part of the Earth and the Earth is part of us:

“I’m inspired by the natural realm, living in the present time, and constantly choosing every day to honor the Earth. Always, I am also inspired by my family and from within my culture. I come from weavers and beaders, through both my Haíłzaqv and Nuučaan̓uł families. We have a history of loving beauty and wearing our culture on ourselves that stretches beyond linear timelines”

We are very honoured to have a small and limited collection of her Ovoid earrings here at the gallery. The forms found in Coast Salish art are built on a unique set of shapes, including circles, ovals, crescents, trigons, and four-point stars. The arrangement of these overlapping shapes creates a framework, often emphasising the negative space created by crescents and trigons. These elements are stretched, curved, and arranged to form meaningful designs and can be influenced by the tradition of relief carving.