Lloyd Wadhams Sr. was a prolific and highly skilled Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw carver, best known for his silver carving, though he also worked in wood earlier in his career. According to the Museum of Vancouver, Wadhams Sr. was trained in carving and painting by Chief Henry Speck (1908-1971), an influence that can be felt in the density and assurance of his design work. [1]

This large panel is especially inventive in the way the Thunderbird’s wing and the Killer Whale’s dorsal fin are slotted into the composition, creating a sense of movement and depth while still preserving the strength of the flat format. Carved in red cedar and left unpainted, the complex formline designs of the Thunderbird and Killer Whale are rendered through a combination of low relief and incised carving. A stylistically similar unpainted four-part panel, made around 1973, is held in the collection of the Museum of Vancouver (object AA 2523a-e).

Christopher W. Smith