Before he passed away, the Haida artist Bill Reid was internationally renowned for his totem poles and other large pieces, as well as for his work on a small scale in silver and gold. His masterpiece, The Spirit of Haida Gwaii, is a bronze canoe six metres (20 feet) long, filled to overflowing with the creatures of Haida mythology. Two copies of this extraordinary bronze casting exist, one in the Canadian Chancery in Washington, DC, and the other in the main foyer of the Vancouver International Airport.

Ulli Steltzer's superb black-and-white photographs record and reveal intimate insights into the creative process of this sculpture, as well as the parts and the whole of this monumental work. The story of the sculpture and of its creator, Bill Reid, is engagingly related by Robin Laurence. And Bill Reid's own descriptions of the creatures in the canoe provide glimpses into the mythic complexity and power of The Spirit of Haida Gwaii.

The story of the sculpture and of its creator, Bill Reid, is engagingly related by Robin Laurence. And Bill Reid's own descriptions of the creatures in the canoe provide glimpses into the mythic complexity and power of The Spirit of the Haida Gwaii.