Todd Jason Baker

Todd Jason Baker was born in North Vancouver, British Columbia, in 1965. He is the grandson of the (late) great leader and speaker Chief Khot-la-cha (Chief Simon Baker). He has lived most of his life in North Vancouver and completed his high school education and a few years of post secondary education there.

He began drawing for his tribe, The Squamish Nation, at the age of thirteen and had Bill Reid critique his first piece in 1983. Instead of using his thunderbird design as the new logo for the tribe, he went straight to a limited edition and hasn't looked back. Since then he has done numerous pieces for institutions around the country. These include the Love Doves for the Peace Federation of Canada, and a variation of the doves for the Teachers Federation of B.C. He continued his work for the Teachers Federation and created more designs for their Heart Disease, Diabetes, and Heart and Stroke foundations.

Although thoroughly enjoying his work here, Mr. Baker's heart was in fashion. This passion drove him to begin school in Los Angeles and New York. While attending school at these prestigious institutions, he was honoured with a trip to Paris for being the most accomplished artist of the school year. He began a new career as a fashion designer and worked for design houses such as Donna Karan and Gap. After studying and working in NY for 9 years, living in Paris, France and London, England, Todd finally came home to his family. Upon his return, his dream has been to carry on a cultural tradition of bringing knowledge to the people through the looking glass of Northwest Coast native art and its legends. Through his art, Mr. Baker has indeed given much to the world.