5. The Shark and Jellyfish Mural: Ancestral Waters
This Tlingit shark art mural is part of the Seattle Waterfront Popup Mural series I created in the summer of 2024. Make sure to read about each of them in my blog. I have beautiful detailed prints available in the store, if you are interested. I created this mural in partnership with Friends of the Waterfront for the new Seattle Waterfront Prominade
Tlingit Shark Art: Ancestral Waters
In “Ancestral Waters,” viewers are invited into a serene underwater realm where tradition and mythology converge. As a guardian of the deep, the shark in this tlingit shark art carries the legacy of its ancestors on its belly. Within these patterns, an ancestor’s face emerges, a silent sentinel watching over the marine world. Crepuscular rays pierce the water’s surface, casting a celestial glow. This light reveals a glimpse of distant land and the rich tapestry of seaweed at the borders. As schools of fish navigate the currents, they symbolize the continuity of life and the flow of cultural narratives across generations. This tlingit shark art is a tribute to the enduring spirit of indigenous cultures. It weaves the past into the present through formline artistry.
Bill Pfeifer, Jr (Weidaaka Yoodoohaa) is standing next to his Shark mural wrap in Seattle
Inspiration and Concept
The Shark: Personally, the dogfish shark hold a special place in my heart. During a trip to Hoonah with my brother, we stayed with relatives and learned a lot about our heritage. When I was about ten years old, I saw a shark up close for the first time. We had been beach seining for an upcoming potlatch party and the shark had gotten caught up in the net. Since shark skin makes excellent sandpaper, my relatives shared stories of using it for fine carving work, which made the dogfish seem very cool to me.
The Ancestor’s Face: This represents lineage and the presence of ancestors guiding and protecting their descendants. In Tlingit traditions, a tongue sticking out signifies the transfer of knowledge. It pays respect to ancestors who passed down their wisdom through generations. Since that knowledge lives in every mark, this symbol carries great weight. The ancestral face in the shark has a tongue sticking out. This honors the knowledge passed by my relatives in Hoonah through story telling, carving, arts, and songs.
You can see the tongue in this seemingly carved out ancestor face
Symbolism in the Composition
Crepuscular Rays: While often associated with divine intervention or the presence of the supernatural, these rays signify guidance from the spiritual realm, illuminating the path forward. My inspiration for this element comes from my experiences swimming and diving, where I marveled at the reflections and rays piercing the ocean’s surface. During my childhood, my siblings and I would swim out to small islands off the coast. We caught waves and saw the world both above and below the water’s surface. This view, combined with my snorkeling and diving experiences in Hawaii, inspired the inclusion of crepuscular rays in the mural.
The Land Glimpse: This symbolizes the connection between the Tlingit people and their homeland, emphasizing the importance of territory and belonging. We lived along the coast as a people and I was lucky to have that as my upbringing as well. The view from underwater, reminds us that even if we are away from our home, we can always venture back and it will be there.
The glimpse of land and crepuscular rays emanating
Natural Elements and Symbolism
Seaweed in the Border: As a vital coastal resource, seaweed represents life and sustenance in the coastal regions where the Tlingit reside. The rich tapestry of seaweed at the borders of the mural highlights the importance of these resources in Tlingit culture. We would then dry it out in the summer sun and store it for winter consumption. Another traditional food that I relate back to my trips to Hoonah.
Jellyfish: The colorful jellyfish hold a special place in my heart, symbolizing the delicate balance of beauty and danger in the marine world. As a child, I spent summers with my siblings and I would swim in a cove teeming with jellyfish. We would have jellyfish fights, throwing the harmless white jellyfish at each other while avoiding the stinging red ones. While playful, this cautious interaction with jellyfish left a lasting impression on me. In the mural, I depicted the jellyfish with a gradient effect, adding depth and vibrancy to the ocean scene. Their presence in the artwork not only enhances the visual composition but also serves as a reminder of the wonder and complexity of the underwater world.
Closeup of the jellyfish as it swims
Schools of Fish: These symbolize abundance and community. As fish are central to Tlingit subsistence, they are also featured in the art to represent prosperity and the cyclical nature of life. Also, this element brings back memories of teaching my wife to fish, where she kept feeding the fish but not catching any, creating a humorous and cherished memory.
Design and Process
As I created this tlingit shark art, I experimented with gradients to bring the jellyfish and ocean to life, adding depth and vibrancy. The underbelly of the shark features designs inspired by Pueblo and Navajo pottery, reflecting my wife’s Navajo heritage and integrating elements of southwestern art with traditional Tlingit formline artistry.
Yet my goal was to infuse the piece with vitality while maintaining focus and avoiding a cluttered appearance. So the school of fish was designed with subtle reflections and illumination, kept abstract to ensure they did not distract from the primary subjects – the jellyfish and shark. I referenced bright white lacing, similar to cartoon styles, to depict the reflected light on the ocean floor. The shadows of the rocks and the shark I carefully projected to add depth to the image.
In these murals, I aimed to make the images come to life
Framed print of “Ancestral Waters”
, focusing on shading and gradients to give the appearance of traditional carvings coming to life. For relief cuts like the trigon or split U, I added shadows to achieve this effect. While painting or using rasterized graphics would allow for blending, this project required scaling, so I used vectors. This is why the cel-shaded technique is prevalent across this mural series.
Since this technique is new to me, I plan to integrate it more into my future works. Also, the jellyfish add a dynamic and vibrant element to the ocean scene through their gradient effect, enhancing the overall composition.
The Legacy of This Tlingit Shark Art
“Ancestral Waters: The Legacy Beneath the Waves” is more than just a mural; it is a tribute to the enduring spirit of indigenous cultures. Through formline artistry, it seamlessly weaves the past into the present. It honors the legacy of my ancestors and the rich cultural heritage of the Tlingit people. While this artwork invites viewers to explore a serene underwater realm where tradition and mythology converge, celebrating the continuity of life and the flow of cultural narratives across generations.
Previous Mural Description: 4. The Orca’s First Journey
Next Mural Description: 6. Lunar Wolf: Introspection Under the Celestial Sky
Head back to the Seattle Waterfront Popups blog
Check out the awesome prints available in the store