It was quite the spectacle on Chisholm Street in Ladner Village Monday morning as Sean Frank rolled out his now completed prize project that is headed to Vancouver Island.
The First Nation carver and Ladner resident has been working the past year on a spectacular 18-foot red cedar dugout canoe that was commissioned by the Comox Valley Regional District to be showcased at its soon-to-be-completed $126 million water treatment project.
The canoe is roughly 3.5-to-4 inches thick, compared to the typical 1.5-to-2-inches since it was created for display. Its permanent home will be on the second floor of an interpretative centre.
It was over a year ago that Frank acquired the log through the help of Tsawwassen First Nation artist Karl Morgan. He then got some assistance from friend and fellow artist Charles Joseph with the design and roughing out the canoe’s shape.
“I’ve taken part in a lot of canoe projects and a lot of big totem pole projects, but this is the first one I’ve taken on from start to finish that was mine as a big project,” said Frank who found the time around his job as a heavy machinery operator.
He is a member of K’ómoks First Nation, reflecting his life on Vancouver Island before moving here 14 years ago.
