Coast Salish Carved Wood Sculpture By Doug La Fortune

ca. 1990

17.25″ H x 6.875″ W x 3.75″ W

Hand Carved from Wood of a Loon Over a Frog and Painted

In Very Good Condition

Doug LaFortune (often spelled Doug LaFortune or Douglas LaFortune) is a renowned Coast Salish artist and master carver specializing in carved wood sculptures, totem poles, masks, rattles, welcome figures, and other traditional forms from the Pacific Northwest Coast.

Born in 1953 in Bellingham, Washington, he grew up in the Cowichan Valley on Vancouver Island, British Columbia. He studied fine arts at Camosun College and apprenticed under the legendary Salish carver Simon Charlie, which helped him develop a unique blend of contemporary and traditional Coast Salish styles. He resides in the Tsawout First Nation (part of the WSNE peoples) and has been creating art since the 1970s in mediums like wood carving, painting, drawing, and serigraphy.

His work often features clean, powerful lines with elegant expressions typical of Coast Salish art, incorporating motifs like killer whales (orcas), eagles, bears, ravens, hummingbirds, and more. He has carved in red and yellow cedar, producing everything from small figures and feast dishes to large-scale pieces.