"We did not think of the great open plains, the beautiful rolling hills, and winding streams with tangled growth as "wild". To us it was tame. Earth was bountiful and we were surrounded with the blessings of the Great Mystery."

Luther Standing Bear - Rosebud Sioux

Guardian of the Water Medicine

Guardian of the Water Medicine
Dale Auger

Dale Auger

Dale Auger: On Art, Blood and Kindred Spirits
by Terri Mason

Defining Dale Auger in one sentence is akin to releasing the colours of a diamond in one cut. It can’t be done. It’s the many facets that release a diamond’s true brilliance, as it is the many facets of Auger’s life, education, ancestry, experiences and beliefs that have shaped and polished his work into the internationally acclaimed and collected artist that he is today.

Born a Sakaw Cree from the Bigstone Cree Nation in northern Alberta, Auger’s education began as a young boy when his mother would take him to be with the elders. “I used to say to myself, ‘Why is she leaving me with these old people?’ – but today I see the reason; I was being taught in the old way.”

Auger’s respect for traditional teachings led him on a journey to study art, opening the door to a doctorate in education. He is a talented playwright, speaker and visual artist whose vividly coloured acrylics have captured the attention of collectors that reads like an international ‘Who’s Who’ spanning English to Hollywood royalty. The essence of his work is communication, and now Dr. Auger has come full circle, interpreting the life of his culture – from the everyday to the sacred - through the cross-cultural medium of art.

Read the rest here:

http://www.daleauger.com/printversionbio.cfm

Wednesday, March 26, 2008

Tribe wins grant for Cottonwood deer refuge

By: Thacher Schmid

Cottonwood Island will be preserved and put off limits to long-sought industrial development as a result of a Cowlitz Indian plan to establish a population of endangered deer.

The tribe Monday was awarded its first-ever Tribal Wildlife Conservation grant by the U.S. Department of Interior to protect the endangered Columbian white-tailed deer, whose local population has shrunk to 400.

Tribal officials will use the $200,000 grant to relocate deer from other parts of the lower Columbia region to Cottonwood Island, which is jointly owned by six Columbia River ports.

A 62-acre portion of the 650-acre island will continue to be used for the dumping of Columbia River dredge spoils, said Dianne Perry, manager for the channel- deepening project at the Port of Portland.

A succession of private owners have long wanted to develop the island, which is located just upstream of where the Cowlitz River enters the mightier Columbia River.

But a lack of utilities and access - there's no bridge - as well as environmental concerns have made all development plans non-starters. So the sandy island, much of which is covered by cottonwoods that glow golden yellow in the fall, will remain undeveloped, though subject to vegetation management for the benefit of the deer.

The federal grant was the first to be awarded to the Cowlitz tribe, whose proposal was among 38 chosen from 110 applications nationwide.

Get the whole story here: http://www.tdn.com/articles/2008/03/25/area_news/10172809.txt
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