Bill Reid Foundation

ABOUT THE BILL REID FOUNDATION COLLECTION

The Bill Reid Foundation’s Collection consists of 140 works of Bill Reid’s art — mainly of gold jewellery, as well as silver items, carvings out of wood, wire sculptures, drawings, artist proof prints — and memorabilia and works given to Bill Reid by other artists. Many of these pieces have never been seen publicly.

The core of the Collection is the personal collection of Bill and Martine Reid, which Dr. Reid donated to the Foundation in an agreement which included some purchases and rights to reproduce the works. Dr. Reid retains certain rights to control the application of designs, and quality and quantity of reproduction, in order to assure the integrity of Bill Reid’s art.

The agreement, concluded November 1, 2002, was made possible by financial assistance from the Government of Canada, Maurice and Mary Young, Milton and Fei Wong, Toni and Hildegard Cavelti, and several other donors. It ensures that the Collection remains intact, in the public realm, and in Canada.

In order to augment its Collection and assemble as much as possible of Bill Reid’s work under one roof, the Foundation actively seeks donations of other pieces or, in some cases, the funding required to purchase pieces on the open market.

On April 25, 2001, The BCE Group donated Bill Reid's first bronze sculpture - a stunning high-relief bronze frieze called Mythic Messengers. Commissioned by Teleglobe Canada for its building in Burnaby, B.C., and unveiled in November 1984, the sculpture is 8.5 m long, 1.2 m high, and 45.7 cm deep. Reid wrote: "This work was inspired by a device often used by Haida artists, an exchange of tongues, whereby power was communicated from one mythic creature to another." It is on loan to the Vancouver International Airport, where it joins Reid’s iconic sculpture The Spirit of Haida Gwaii until the Foundation has a home for its Collection.

Other works added to the Collection since 2002 are:

Gold cuff links ca 1963, Haida wolf head, made possible by gifts from Gerry Strongman, Herb Auerbach, Scott Hean, Janet York and Toni Cavelti
A posthumous portrait of Bill Reid by Chris Hopkins, commissioned by the Foundation with a gift from Joseph Kovalik
A 3-piece jewellery set of brooch, bracelet, earrings in sterling and inlaid ebony, designed by John Koerner, fabricated by Bill Reid, donated by Lisa Birnie Koerner
Haida Grizzly Bear print, donated by Mrs. Bruce Hutchinson
Argillite panel brooch, purchased with Foundation acquisition funds
Killer Whale sterling brooch, donated by the late Doris Shadbolt
The Black Eagle Canoe (fibreglass mould of Lootas) with 16 paddles, steering oar and three sails, all with individual unique designs painted by Bill Reid, made possible by a gift from Charles Pancerzewski.