The Critical Issues Lecture Series is free and open to the public. Registration is not required, but it does help us estimate attendance.

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Read about the entire lecture series on the registration website or at the link below.

Rande Cook (b. 1977) is a Kwakwaka’wakw multi-media artist born in culture-rich Alert Bay. He found his passion for artistic creativity at an early age as he studied traditional jewelery and carving techniques under several master craftsmen, including carver John Livingston. In 1991, Cook moved to Victoria where he was exposed to a wide range of art forms and practices from the Western tradition. With his unique accumulation of heritage, knowledge, and experience, Cook continually pushes boundaries to create beautiful and provocative works that challenge audiences to reconsider the role of traditional techniques for contemporary art-making. He carries two chieftainships: the Hamatam / Seagull and the Gigalgam, both from the ancient ancestor Kwanusila / Thunderbird. This story can be seen on the 27-foot totem pole he was commissioned to carve for the Museum Volkenkunde in the Netherlands in 2012. Cook has exhibited widely in the United States and Canada, and, in 2017, he was awarded the Audain Professorship for the Pacific Northwest at the University of Victoria.