VAM galleries including this work: University of Kentucky Art Museum
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Since annual precipitation averages more than 100 inches along Canada’s Pacific Northwest coast (two and one-half times the annual average in Kentucky), rain hats were essential to the traditional way of life among the Haida people. Men and women wore broad-brimmed hats that would not only keep the head and neck dry, but also keep the rain from blocking their vision.

It is also possible that this hat was created for trade. Because the Haida lacked natural resources as a result of their geographic isolation, they relied upon the trade of such objects to obtain some necessities.

The unknown weaver of this hat created it with a raised zigzags-and-diamonds pattern encircling the brim. Most likely a different artist painted the applied design. The semi-abstract, flat-shaped style is characteristic of the Northwest Coast tribes. Using a visual effect called a split animal—as if the creature were bisected from beneath and spread apart so that both sides can be seen at once—the artist depicted what is probably a sea monster from tribal mythology.

About the Artist

The Haida people inhabit an archipelago known as the Queen Charlotte Islands, located off British Columbia near the Alaskan border. They are known for their skill in creating handmade jewelry, intricate carvings, ornate weavings, and baskets and hats woven from cedar bark. Such items played important roles in Haida culture through their traditional ceremonial and religious uses. But since the earliest time of contact, the Haida have also produced craft items for sale, tailoring them to suit European and American tastes and needs.

Classroom Ideas

Discussion: How would you describe the design adorning the hat? Is it purely non-representational, or can you detect identifiable forms or symbols? Does the design remind you of any other works you’ve seen in the Kentucky Virtual Art Museum? If so, what do the works have in common? What features make the rain hat a work of art?

Activity: Create and paint a symmetrical design. Then paint the design on a three-dimensional form, such as a basket, hat, ball, or cube.

Links

Find out more about Haida art and culture at the Canadian Museum of Civilization.
[www.civilization.ca/aborig/haida/haaindxe.html]

Carol Ventura’s web pages about the Haida include photographs and explanations of the hat-weaving process by contemporary Haida weaver Gladys Vandal.
[iweb.tntech.edu/cventura/gladys.htm]