John Livingston (photo courtesy of mymondotrading)
John Livingston, a master carver, painter and mentor who lived in Victoria, died of cancer on March 9. He was 67.
Livingston was not Indigenous by birth, but became friends with Henry Hunt, whose father, Mungo Martin, was head carver for the Thunderbird Park carving program at the Royal B.C. Museum.
From 1971 to 1981, he and Calvin Hunt apprenticed with Tony Hunt Sr., carving totems at the park.
“His knowledge and skills were incredible," Hunt told the Times Colonist from Port Hardy, B.C. "He’s truly going to be missed in the art world. Lots of young people looked to him for guidance because of his knowledge and his connection to the art world.”
In 2017, the Hunt family adopted Livingston, making him part of the Kwakwaka'wakw people.
Livingston acted as co-curator in 1993 of the first of several exhibitions at Victoria's Alcheringa Gallery featuring the work of the Hunt family.
"His cultural knowledge was profound, equaled only by his generosity in sharing this with the young people, who, over the years, apprenticed with him," the gallery said in its April newsletter.
"As a teacher, he set the bar high. His gruff exterior belied a kind heart and he possessed a rare ability to orchestrate the creation of major group projects involving a number of artists, sometimes across diverse Northwest Coast nations. As well as learning to carve, his students. also learned from him the value of professional behaviour and entrepreneurial skills."
Source: Victoria Times Colonist, Alcheringa Gallery