Michelle Stoney - Gitxsan Hand

By Michelle Stoney, Gitxsan artist.

The hand was an idea from local high school teachers. They had asked me to create a design to honour the local survivors. In the palm of the hand is Stigyoden , our local mountain in the Gitxsan Nation in Northern British Columbia. Surrounding the mountain are flowers, which in our language we call majagalee , which also means children. And on the top, representing the fingers are the feathers, which honour the children who never made it home.