Alcheringa Gallery
665 Fort Street
Victoria, BC, Canada
TEL: (250) 383-8224
FAX: (250) 383-9399
email alcheringa
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Dorothy Grant
Haida
Dorothy Grant was born in Hydaburg in 1955, and grew up in Ketchikan, Alaska. She is a Kaigani Haida of the Raven clan from the Brown Bear house of Howkan. Among her family crests are Two-Finned Killerwhale, Shark, Berry Picker in the Moon and Brown Bear.
Dorothy is a fashion designer and traditional Haida artist. Her garments, ceremonial button blankets, and spruce root hats may be found in art collections throughout the world. Her strong connection to her culture and sense of Haida identity is the creative force behind her fashion labels Feastwear and Dorothy Grant.
Dorothy apprenticed with Haida Elder Florence Davidson to learn spruce root basket weaving, Haida history and the importance of women's work.
SELECTED EXHIBITIONS
1977 Community College, Seattle, WA. First Button Blanket
1983 The idea for Feastwear dates to 1983 when Dorothy began sketching to see what Northwest Coast formline design might look like applied to clothing. In my mind I could see it but I didn't have the technical training to illustrate.
1986 Dorothy's first garment, Raven Creation Tunic, a high-fashion interpretation of traditional Haida ceremonial regalia, was presented at a dignitaries feast hosted by the Canadian Pavilion at Expo '86. Today the garment is part of the Canadian Museum of Civilization's (Hull, Québec) permanent collection. Raven Creation Tunic depicts the Haida creation myth.
1987 Attended the Helen Lefeaux School of Fashion Design in Vancouver, BC, graduating in 1988.
1989 June. Dorothy's first collection was debuted at Derek Simpkins Gallery of Tribal Art.
Dorothy staged a showing of fifty-five pieces at a Vancouver Museum, Vancouver, BC, which attracted national media coverage and resulted in an invitation to participate in a Vancouver Museum exhibit.
1990 Dorothy exhibited her collection in Haida territory in January, 1990. Coinciding with the Annual Assembly of the Council of the Haida Nation Assembly, the collection was presented in the community hall in Skidegate. Elders and younger Haida women participated as models. Recalling the Skidegate presentation, Dorothy said, It was very important for me to bring this show home to Haida Gwaii. It was there that my own people were encouraged by it. The Haida women endorsed my venture into this new medium by purchasing from my first collection.
Meridian Gallery in San Francisco, CA, Haida Ritual Art: The Insistent Present.
Raven Takes the World, button blanket, acquired as part of the permanent collection of the Museum of Civilization, Hull, Québec.
1991 Vancouver Museum exhibited Raven Greatcoat as part of the exhibition, Panache - 200 years of Fashionable Women.
Raven Creation Tunic and Hummingbird Copper Panel Dress acquired by the Museum of Civilization, Hull, Québec.
Raven Cape, private donation to the Vancouver Museum.
Supernatural Frog button blanket, private donation to the deYoung Museum, San Francisco, California.
1992 Land, Spirit, Power, a group exhibit of Canadian Aboriginal artists, presented at several galleries.
1993 March. Winds of Change design competition, Canadian Council for Native Business, Best Professional Designer award.
September. Les Vendanges sur la Montaigne, Paris, France. Dorothy was the featured designer at a special reception sponsored by the Canadian Embassy in Paris, France
1994 July. Dorothy’s retail store opened in prestigious Sinclair Centre, Vancouver, British Columbia.
August. Cultural Wealth, Apparel BC’s tribute to the Commonwealth games. She showcased her Fall 1995 collection with 13 other Vancouver designers. The grand finale, Raven Takes the World, Haida wedding dress is breathtaking. Made of white deerskin, silk-screened artwork
October. The Smithsonian Institute and the National Museum of the American Indian invited Dorothy to donate a garment for a fundraising auction. Raven Creation Tunic donation to the Smithsonian Institute and the National Museum of American Indian.
Raven Greatcoat, University of British Columbia Museum of Anthropology, Vancouver, BC
1995 Seven Ravens, a set of two button blankets, acquired by the National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario.
1998 Dorothy was honored at University of Northern British Columbia with a Honorary Doctorate of Law degree. She received this for her business achievement, and her influence as a role model in aboriginal communities.
1999 Burke Museum of Seattle purchased The Shark Button Blanket, Robes of Power. Dorothy also donated an original Feastwear garment from the 1989 collection.
National Aboriginal Achievement Awards, March 1999, Regina Saskatchewan.
2003 In Celebration of the Feast, Alcheringa Gallery, Victoria, BC
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