Pisces, 2012, giclée ink on paper, edition 15/30. SFU Art Collection. Gift of the Salish Weave Collection of George and Christiane Smyth, 2022. Photo: Janet Dwyer
In Pisces, emerging artist Liam Paul uses traditional Coast Salish design elements to depict two salmon swimming in a circle. In Western symbology, the Pisces astrological sign is portrayed as two fish tied together, which is often linked to the Greek myth of Aphrodite and her son Eros. According to myth, the pair transformed into fish to escape the monster Typhon and tied themselves together so they would not get separated.
For many Indigenous groups of the Pacific Northwest, salmon are vital food staple and have long been essential sources of trade and wealth; as such, the salmon is deeply woven into the culture, identity, and way of life. In Coast Salish culture, the salmon is a powerful symbol for determination, persistence, abundance, instinct, wealth, and prosperity. Depictions of salmon in pairs signify good luck and portraying them in a circular shape represents the cyclical nature of life. The combination of these elements, a design of two salmon in a circle conveys the themes of good luck and a prosperous life.
Liam Paul (b. 1999) is from the T'sartlip First Nation, and the son of recognized artist Chris Paul and the brother of emergent artists C̸OSINIYE Paul and Sage Paul. He learned to carve in his father’s studio and attended his weekly carving course, Carve Night. Paul also expresses his ideas through sketching, drawing and printmaking.