Book

The Transforming Image:
Painted Arts of Northwest Coast First Nations

by Bill McLennan and Karen Duffek

The photographs that appear on this site were taken as part of the Museum of Anthropology's Image Recovery Project, which used infrared photography to reveal paintings of historical Northwest Coast belongings that had been visually obscured by the patina of age. The project assembled images of nearly 1,000 different artworks over its two-decade run and engaged contemporary First Nations artists to reconstruct the compositions to better understand their original context and significance. The project culminated with the publication of the first edition of The Transforming Image: Painted Arts of Northwest Coast First Nations in 2000, which presented many of the infrared images alongside insightful and engaging commentary. These rediscovered artworks have radically deepened the understanding of Northwest Coast First Nations history and relationships to painting, including techniques, materials, imagery, and the creativity of generations of ancestor artists.

In the two decades since its initial publication, The Transforming Image has become a must-have book for First Nations artists, who have found inspiration in its wealth of images and ideas, and for scholars and appreciators of Northwest Coast art. In 2022, a second edition of this groundbreaking volume was published, making its invaluable findings and images accessible to all, yet again.

Would you like to read more about the project and the painted works pictured on this site? See further information about The Transforming Image at Figure One Publishing, and the book is available for purchase through MOA's online shop here.