Dr Gareth Phillips had been a regular at the festival so some years, and I knew him to be an enthusiastic wood carver. When he approached me and suggested carving a new Totem Pole for the Tipi Field, I was immediately very keen. The old Oak Totem had been on its last legs for years and although the heart wood was still good, every year we had to chisel off the dead wood and give the old pole a good lick of paint. At the time of agreeing to the project, I had no idea that Gareth had trained under Bill Reid, a Haida artist of great renown.
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