We gratefully acknowledge and honour the territory and the lands on which the project originated: the Lekwungen (Songhees), SXIMEŁEŁ (Esquimalt), and WSÁNEĆ (Saanich)

About the artwork

SÁMI EṮ XÁLS. U, SDOYEMs TŦE SWEȻEȽ I, TŦE ŚW̱KITES. NIȽ ȻE,ĆÁ, XAXE ŦIŦEȽ SIÁM. SU JIJEȽ ȽTE TŦU, NIȽ XÁLS.

LÁ,TEṈ TŦU MEQ STÁṈ EṮ XÁLS. LÁ,E TŦU MEQ E TŦE TOŦELṈEW̱ I, TŦE SĆȺNEW̱ I, TŦE ȾÁLEȾEM. LÁ,E U, LÁ,E TŦE TEṈEW̱ I, TŦE SȻÁCEL I, TŦE ŚḰENO, TŦU MEQ. TÍYELs TŦE SĆȺNEW̱ YÁ, ĆSE LÁ,E TŦE ŚḰENO,. QELEṈSEN TŦU, NIȽ ŚW̱KITES. STES ȻE,ĆÁ, E TŦE SḰEL,ḰELs EṮ XÁLs. I, SWEȻEȽ TŦU, NIȽ SȻÁĆEL I, TŦE TEṈEW̱ I, TŦE ŚḰENO,. LÁ,TEṈ ȻE,ĆÁ, TŦU MEQ STÁN EṮ XÁLS. ṈOS TŦE ŚW̱,LÁLEs E TŦE SḰE,ḰEL. ṈES,ÁNW̱ ȻE,ĆÁ, ŚW̱,LÁ,Es TŦU NIȽ SḰE,ḰEL. I,ḰE,ḰELEṈ TŦE SȻÁĆEL I, U, SOSESs EṮ XÁLS E TŦE SḰE,ḰEL. TÁ,ȻIṈEȽ TŦU, MEQ STÁṈ EȻs ḰO,ḰELs EṮ XÁLS. SȻÁ,TEṈ ȽTE TIÁ, SḰAL.

SÁMI EṮ XÁLS. I, SDOYEMs TŦE ŚW̱KITES. NIȽ ȻE,ĆÁ, ŚW̱JIJEȽ ȽTE TŦE XAXE.

The creator wears a blanket, a wool blanket and a W̱SÁNEĆ head dress. It is because the creator is sacred, high up and honourable. So we give thanks to the creator.

The creator made everything here: the animals, the fish and the birds. There they all are on the land, in the sky and in the sea. The salmon go upstream from the ocean. Eagle is the creators head dress. It is because eagle is close to the messages from the creator. The wool blanket is everything. It is the land, the sky and the sea. The creator made it all. There are four places of the sun, because the sun moves along the horizons of the rising and setting suns across the four seasons. The sun is the face of the creator, shinning light on everything with sacred words. We are gifted this language.

The creator wears a blanket and a W̱SÁNEĆ head dress. This is because we give thanks to sacredness.