Artwork copyright Susan Point. Photo courtesy of Washington State Arts Commission, 2014.

Artwork copyright Susan Point. Photo courtesy of Washington State Arts Commission, 2014.

Artwork copyright Susan Point. Photo courtesy of Washington State Arts Commission, 2014.

Artwork copyright Susan Point. Photo courtesy of Washington State Arts Commission, 2014.

Scinqua, 2005

Susan Point
Canadian Musqueam (born 1952)

Location: The Evergreen State College, Olympia

About the Artwork

Scinqua by Susan Point (Musqueam) is a wall-mounted sculpture that takes the form of a Salish spindle whorl. The central imagery depicts the people of the water making an offering of Scinqua—a two-headed serpent and food of the Thunderbird—to a higher power for delivering them from drought. Seven salmon representing the Native peoples of the seven inlets in South Puget Sound swim around the outside. A spindle whorl is a tool used in spinning to make yarn.

This artwork was acquired for the State Art Collection in partnership with The Evergreen State College.

About the Artist

Susan Point is a celebrated First Nations Musqueam artist working in the Coast Salish tradition of her ancestors. She is based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, which is the traditional territory of the Musqueam.
Point creates fine art and public sculptural artworks in a variety of media. The use of her ancestral visual language is complemented by contemporary concepts, non traditional materials, and innovative design elements. She notes, "Coast Salish art has forever been a way to honour and remember significant details of our social lives. My hope is that my children remember to tell not only our cultural accounts, but also their own stories as well."