Lot 135
DEMPSEY BOB (1948-)
Additional Images
Note:
Dempsey Bob, an artist of mixed TahItan and Tlingit First Nations descent, was born in 1948 in the Tahltan village of Telegraph Creek. Working primarily as a sculptor, Dempsey Bob creates masks, bowls, and totems that include intricate patterns and designs that both preserve and celebrate traditional Tahltan and Tlingit cultures and styles. Bob apprenticed under the late Haida artist Freda Diesing, who was instrumental in the revival of Northwest Coast art in the 1960s. In 2006, Bob helped to found the Freda Diesing School of Northwest Coast Arts to carry on the legacy of his mentor. He boasts a multitude of group and solo exhibitions and his works are featured in a number of prominent collections, including the Canadian Museum of History (Gatineau, QC), Smithsonian Institution (Washington, D.C.), Canada House (London, UK), and National Museum of Ethnology (Suita, JP). Dempsey Bob was appointed an Officer of the Order of Canada in 2013, "for his dedication to the preservation of Tahltan-Tlingit artistry as a master carver and mentor to a new generation of artists.”