Playground of the Gods

Context

The Ainu people are an Indigenous population living on the Japanese island of Hokkaidō, but also once occupied areas of northeastern Honshu and the Russian Islands of Sakhalin and Kuril. The Ainu worship the natural world around them; a world in which all creatures are believed to be sacred.

According to Ainu beliefs, all things in nature are spirits sent to the Ainu mosir (human land) from Kamuy mosir (Spirit land) disguised as bears, cranes, trees, wind, rain, and so forth. Kamuy (gods) send these spirits to humans as good or bad gifts depending on how respectful humans are to nature. If humans are not respectful, the evil gods will punish them with floods, droughts, and other natural hardships.

These carved columns are directly inspired by Northwest Coast totem poles, while the location and title of this sculpture are a reference Mount Daisetsu in Daisetsuzan National park near the centre of Hokkaidō. Admired for their height, beauty, and remoteness, the Ainu refer to this cluster of volcanic peaks as Kamui mintara (The playground of the gods).

The sculpture tells the story of people, gods and creatures living together on the earth. Many gods in their animal incarnations are present, including the brown bear, the owl, the salmon and the orca. The large sculpture of bound poles represents the ties between the Ainu and their gods. The gods are represented by the animals carved on the tall poles, and the smaller poles represent the people.

Additional information

This sculpture in wood was created by Nuburi Toko, a renowned sculptor of the Ainu people. It was a gift to Burnaby from its Japanese twin city of Kushiro.