There are pronounced differences between the 2.42-foot tall bronze representation of Shiva Nataraja from 13th century India by a Hindu, and the 4.46-foot long wooden Sea Lion Feast Bowl carved by the Kwakuitl culture of British Columbia in the 1800s.
The Kwakiutl culture carved many large wooden feast bowls into the shapes of animals they valued and respected (Tinterow, Kwakiutl). This one is a toothy sea lion, with an eagle head at its tail. The bronze sculpture was cast in the likeness of Shiva, the destroyer, in their form as Shiva Nataraja, the god of music and dance (Tinterow, Hindu). The Shiva is bronze that has oxidized to a very dark green, so it is monochrome (Shiva Nataraja). The bowl is brown wood, and was painted with red, green, and black, but the pigments have faded with time (Sea Lion Feast Bowl). On the bowl, emphasis is created by only detailing the sea lion’s features and, to a lesser extent, the eagle’s head. The rest of the bowl is smooth and attracts less attention. Emphasis is unutilized in the Shiva sculpture. Shiva is asymmetrical from all angles, while the bowl …show more content…
The Chola dynasty was marked by a flourishing of the Hindu religion and culture, during which many representations of their deities were created as temple figures (Shiva Nataraja). The sculpture was then possibly made to visually depict Shiva and his attributes as a god. The Sea Lion Bowl, in contrast, was created by an unknown Kwakiutl carver from Vancouver Island somewhere in the timespan from 1850 to 1875. At the time, the Kwakiutl were economically and culturally impacted by the establishment of Fort Rupert by the Hudson’s Bay Company. The Kwakiutl had to participate in the cash economy and cope with government suppression of their culture. Regardless, attempts were made to preserve their language and culture, including reviving the arts and safeguarding what pieces were left