Grand Hall

The majestic Grand Hall – the architectural centrepiece of the Museum – occupies 1,782 square metres (19,182 sq. ft.) with floor-to-ceiling windows of 112 m x 15 m (365 ft. x 50 ft.) framing a view of Parliament Hill. The Grand Hall houses an exhibition of six Pacific coast Indian house facades connected by a shoreline and boardwalk. The forest backdrop, which stretches the entire length of the Hall, is a scrim with the largest colour photograph in the world.

The displays focus primarily on traditional culture, while the exhibits inside the houses examine contemporary issues. Those interior exhibits are being developed in cooperation with the Native people of the region concerned. In some houses short-terms exhibits showing selections from the Museum's collection may be seen while the cooperative exhibits are under development. The Museum is home to the world's largest and finest collection of totem poles, many of which are displayed in the Grand Hall.

The Grand Hall is animated with storytelling, demonstrations, and performing arts. After public hours, it is available for private receptions and banquets.

Raven's Canoe
Peoples of the Coast
Raven's Village
Houses and Totem Poles

six Native houses

View larger image of village
(photo: Harry Foster, CMC T2004-003)

The housefronts, which represent 1:Tsimshian, 2:Haida, 3:Nuxalk (Bella Coola), 4:Central Coast, 5:Nuu-Chah-Nulth (Nootka), and 6:Coast Salish peoples, were made by Native artisans, with work initiated in British Columbia and assembled at the Museum. To find out more about one of the houses or totem poles, click on the image of the one that interests you.

People of the Salmon
Bentwood boxes
Poles along the windows
The Haida canoe
The Transformation Mask
The Spirit of Haida Gwaii
In Memoriam: Bill Reid (1920-1998)

Products related to the Grand Hall:

Related topics at Civilization.ca
Clothing of Tsimshian nobles |  Chilkat blankets |  Button blankets |  Haida hats |  Frontlets |  Copper shields |  Model totem pole |  Haida house models |  Ceremonial interior house screen (Tsimshian) |  Bentwood storage boxes |  Haida pipe |  Haida secret society masks |  Tsimshian mask |  Raven rattle |  Spindle whorl (Salish) |  Haida gambling sticks |  Argillite carvings |  Dugout canoes |  Northwest Coast settings in art |  The Haida: Children of Eagle and Raven |  Selective Bibliography - The Haida |  Northwestern Coastal Culture, 8,000-4,000 B.C. |  Early West Coast Culture, 4,000-1,000 B.C. |  Late West Coast Culture, 1,000 B.C. to A.D. 500

Credits:

    Text - Andrea Laforet, Nancy Ruddell, George MacDonald
    Photography - Harry Foster, Steven Darby, Stephen Alsford
    Raven's Canoe graphic - Based on a traditional Haida design
    Web page production - Stephen Alsford