Some would argue that modern-day totems exist in the modern-day art and to some extent that may be true, however the content would have changed drastically and the votive nature of the totem has been transformed to modern concerns. The original totemic art originated in the Pacific Coast northwest from Alaska and British Columbia. Native Indians carved wooden totems, imbued them with a spiritual symbolism and have been protected by the dwindling tribes who live on the coast. The monumental totems of the Haida and Tlingit in the Totem Bight State Historical Park in Alaska, and the intricate artwork of the Kwakuitl, Salish, and Bella Coola are worth mentioning. The significance of totems is that their verticality lends them a status that is both intimidating and sublime. Historian Eddie Malin (1986) has proposed a theory of totem pole development. He argues that the poles served the purpose of house posts, funerary containers, and memorial markers into symbols of clan and family wealth and prestige. In popular culture, totems have also been associated with witchery and the black arts. The carvings on totems are highly symbolic but they have also been adapted to bags, T-shirts for tourists and souvenirs. Unfortunately very few of the original poles remain because they were made of wood and decayed easily in the rainforest. The custom of carving these poles may pre-date the existing ones that date back to the 1880s, since there are many accounts by European travelers. Post-Impressionist painter Paul Gauguin who set up an artist’s residency on the islands of Tahiti was also influenced by totemic art and it reflects in his art time and again. One lyrical depiction of this influence is his painting of a girl lying on a yellow blanket being watched over by a spirit-a totem that has glowing eyes and presence that is neither benign nor aggressive. (Demystify art, e-mail georgina.maddox@expressindia.com)
