Genur.art

Aged sepia-toned daguerrotype of a kwakiutl tribal grease-feast ceremony inside a dark longhouse. Anthropological photorealistic image of village seated at long table while chieftain in totemic costume presents a ceremonial bowl of burning fish oil. The flames reach the ceiling of the longhouse and sooty smoke curls around the wooden rafters. Everyone is dressed in the animal costumes and totem masks typical of precolumbian Pacific Northwest tribes. Scene is viewed from the long side of the table, distant from action. The image is very speckled and stained, age-worn and slightly out of focus, similar to surviving 19th century photographs. The entire scene is suffused with a sinister energy, speaking to the asymmetric power dynamics of the potlatch tradition.