YA’YA CHARLES PETER (CHUCK) HEIT (1951-2021) & MARGARET HEIT (1929-D?) GITXSAN
unsigned.
ESTIMATE: $3,500 — $5,000
Further images
Gitxsan artist Ya'Ya (Chuck) Heit and his mother, Margaret Heit, collaborated on a number of gagwis'nap'a'la (button blankets), with Chuck devising the crest designs and Margaret translating them into cloth through careful cutting, sewing, and appliqué.
Gagwis'nap'a'la were traditionally made for dancing, their broad expanses of wool draped across the shoulders and sweeping down the back. With each turn, the heavy fabric would swing outward, setting the crest in motion. One can imagine the blazing red curves and sharply hooked beak of this sun and bird of prey design seeming to dance against the dark ground, while the rows of white shell buttons shimmered and flashed in the light.
ND
Provenance
3 Vets, Vancouver, BCAcquired from the above by the present Montreal Collection, c. 1990.
Exhibitions
Montreal, Montreal World Trade Centre, [sn. Unknown Fashion Benefit/Event?], [sd., c. 1995?]. Photographic documentation of the runway presentation survives, pictured here, although the event and venue remain unconfirmed at the time of publishing.
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