I am starting this blog again because there are things I need to get out of my brain. I half-complete projects all the time, and I feel like at least there should be an archive of my process.
I also frequently have questions for the internet and I want this to be a place where I can post the answers.
Today, for example, I was wondering about totem poles. Im not quite sure what prompted my totem pole thoughts, but I suddenly felt the urge to know about them. Here is what the internet said:
The totem carvings tell a story, revealed only if one knows the meaning assigned to various animals, fish, birds and designs and where they are placed on the pole. There were a number of reasons why a particular figure or design was chosen by a clan. The connection between the clan and the various figures carved into the pole may have been as a result a special gift from the animal, fish or bird spirits. Or, there may have been a recent encounter with that figure. Some clans claimed to be descended from certain totem figures.
The meaning of many totem poles is lost with time. Even some of today's totem polescan not be understood except from one person - it's owner. Understanding the symbolism and stories hidden within the totem pole is more than a simple exercise in learning the attributed meanings of the figures. It is possible to know the meaning assigned a figure by the people of the Northwest, but it is not always possible to know its significance to the over-all story.
Totem figures are not Gods. Totems are not worshiped like religious icons nor used as a talisman. They were never used to ward off evil spirits and claims of bizarre, magical "totemism" practices are fiction. A totem pole may be compared to the symbolism portrayed in the Great Seal of the United States or a Coat of Arms. These national emblems are roughly equivalent to the meaning bound up in a totem pole except they identified clans not an entire nation.
Totem poles are carved today by both native and non-native people. They have become a highly valued art form and a symbol of pride and tradition for the people of the Pacific Northwest.
http://www.manataka.org/page30.html
I want to make a zine. I have also been wondering about my personal connection to people. My friends, family, acquaintances. I think that it is really interesting that the meaning of totem poles cannot be known for sure because the overall story is important. I like the idea of mapping my own connections with people by making/telling totem pole stories.
One of the things I find interesting about the connection between two people is the unimportant secrets they have together. The secrets are just everyday things that happen- things that people dont think are important enough to tell. They dont necessarily need to be kept secret, but they are never told anyway. I dont have any good examples right now. Just unspoken actions that are seemingly unimportant.
Goals: I want to learn to draw my own totem poles. I want my totem poles to tell a story.
Ideas: What part of the story should I tell? Should it be all inclusive, or super specific? Can music be involved? Can i take all the people i know and make a totem pole that tells the story of us?
