BEAR: protection, strength, nurturing, power, healing Measures 4.5" x 4.5" x 6.25" high. Handcrafted silkscreened red cedar bentwood box by Metis-Cree artist James Michels. As handcrafted items, there is slight variation in the printing and woodgrain of each piece. Born in 1969 in Merritt, British Columbia, James Michels is an Indigenous artist of Metis and Cree ancestry. In 1994, James was employed at a log home company, which gave him experience with chisels and sharpening techniques and inspired him to start carving and painting. He apprenticed with Coast Salish artist Joe Campbell, under whose guidance he learned design, carving, and painting techniques. Another source of inspiration for James was Carrier artist Larry Rosso. At the age of 30, James began steaming and bending wood, and making his own bent cedar boxes. He now specializes in making steam-bent cedar boxes carved and painted in the Northwest Coast style. In 2005, he created custom bent boxes for the participants of the PGA Golf Skins Game in Whistler, British Columbia, and in 2008, James was commissioned through the Royal Bank of Canada to create a large bentwood box, “The Mendl Gathering”, which contained abalone inlays and operculum shells. Made in Canada
