Henry Robertson

Hereditary Chief Henry Robertson Ga-ba-baawk, known as Hank to many, was born in 1934 and left us on February 23rd, 2016. Lattimer Gallery had represented Henry for nearly thirty years. A cultural and artistic leader amongst the Haisla people, Henry began to carve at age ten and was influenced by his father, carver Gordon Robertson. He carved masks, feast bowls, and totem poles. Henry especially enjoyed carving large-scale totem poles, and he carved a totem pole for the Aboriginal Friendship Centre in Vancouver, BC. He was also responsible for the Aboriginal Pavilion at the PNE in Vancouver from 2004-2006. He was also a member of the Haisla Totem Pole Repatriation Project, and was featured in the NFB documentary Totem: The Return of the G’psgolox Pole. Henry's nephews are Haisla artists Derek Wilson, Gary Wilson, and Barry Wilson, and he has influenced them in their work. He taught and influenced numerous artists along the Northwest Coast - including the young Haisla artist featured below, Nathan Wilson - and his contributions will be sorely missed.