



Bootdog Collective
233.7 x 68.6 x 45.7 cm
Further images
In Northwest Coast art, the same characters are revisited over and over again, and those characters have features that are foundational to them. There are certain design elements that are indicative of each character that can be mixed and matched, but ultimately have to be utilized in order to signify the creature that is being presented. In 2017, Cole Speck and Alan Hunt created this Dzunukwa Figure Pole under the name Bootdog Collective.
Both artists were apprentices of Beau Dick, who made his version of the pole years earlier. With help from Bruce and Wayne Alfred, two senior carvers in Alert Bay, BC, Cole and Alan finished their pole six months after Beau’s passing and undoubtedly had him in mind during the carving process.
Commonly known under her Kwakwaka’wakw name Tsonoqua, she is a large, human-like creature who is covered with black hair and can be heard calling out "huuu huuu huuu" as she moves through the forest. Masks representing her typically have pursed-lips to reference this sound. Tsonoqua is also known as Copper Woman, and is symbolically associated with wealth. Many stories speak of children who help Tsonoqua and are rewarded with gifts of meat, furs, copper, and supernatural powers.