What do the illegal wildlife trade, Quebec folk art and tobacco fabric novelties have in common? The Royal Alberta Museum (RAM), of course.
From now until the first week of May, the provincial museum features three touring shows in its main showroom. While the first two raise provocative questions about the international wildlife souvenir trade and clever marketing techniques tobacco companies use, the third simply glows with the labour of love employed in creating rural folk art.
• Illegal Killer Trade – Habitat destruction is a major cause of species extinction. However, the unlicensed commercial exploitation of animals comes second and the destiny of most endangered species unfortunately lies in the hands of collectors and tourists.
“One hundred years ago, tigers numbered about 100,000. In the world today, there are less than 6,000,” says Mark Edwards, RAM curator of mammalogy.
He highlights a container of tiger penises displayed in an apothecary stand. “It has been a practice to take plant and animal parts and make medicinal properties. Very few stand up to rigorous scientific testing but the belief that wildlife’s medicinal properties has special properties has contributed to the decline of populations.”
Despite the seriousness of the subject matter, Illegal Killer Trade, a collaborative project between Granby Zoo and the Musée de la nature et des sciences de Sherbrooke, has a brightly coloured, whimsical vibe designed to appeal to children.
Visitors tour this exploitive world as if travelling to an exotic destination. First is a stop at the Skin and Bones Travel Agency that provides information on different parts of the world and their major conservation issues.
“The idea is that this is a global issue. Whether you travel at home, in the developed world or exotic locations, there are laws and regulations to protect the sustainability of populations and the sustainability of trade.”
After choosing a destination, visitors go through airport customs and receive information to guide their shopping choices. “We’re trying to instil that we need to do our homework. There’s nothing wrong with getting a souvenir but we need to consider the ramifications.”
Once out of customs, visitors walk through a bazaar with six stalls — a souvenir stall, an apothecary stand, a clothing and textile booth, an exotic pet cave, a street kitchen and a fair trade souvenir stand.
A zebra leg lamp, crocodile boots, an alligator skin purse, a butterfly collection and elephant tusk carvings are just a small sampling of the display items. “All of these items came into the country illegally and have been confiscated by Canada Customs.”
Edwards also points out that it might not be illegal to sell an item in a country, but it could be illegal to import it. “We need to ask questions to determine the origin of a species. If people can’t answer your questions and raise doubt, don’t buy that souvenir.”
• Better Choose Me: Collecting and Creating with Tobacco Fabric Novelties – Aggressive marketing strategies are often credited to the post-war boom that fuelled big business dreams. However, American tobacco companies laid the blueprint for seductive marketing nearly 50 years earlier.
Better Choose Me takes us to the Victorian era from 1880 to 1920, a time of intense competition for tobacco sales. While anti-smoking bans became popular only in the 20th century, many turn-of-the-century women frowned on the manly pursuit of smoking cigars/cigarettes and chewing tobacco.
In the same era there was a popular style of needlework called “crazy quilts” made up of small, brightly coloured fabric squares stitched together. Women sewed garments and household objects such as blankets, pillows and covers with these vivid squares.
When tobacco companies hit on the idea of tying cigars with silk ribbons, they became collector items for women who sewed them into quilts. The companies cashed in on the craze and were soon issuing palm size silk and cotton flannel novelties and premiums to reward regular purchases and brand name loyalty.
“It was all part of the 19th century entrepreneurial zeal, issuing relatively affordable slogans printed in silk,” says Cathy Roy, RAM curator of western Canadian history.
“Women were pandered to with objects of beauty while men consumed the product. Women were bribed to accept a product that proved to be harmful. Suddenly it wasn’t so bad for the husband to smoke because you could get a nice piece of ribbon for the wife.”
The travelling textile exhibit from the Kauffman Museum in Kansas features quilted cigar ribbons, cigarette silks and tobacco flannels still in pristine condition. Many of these small novelties were issued in different series that included fruits, flowers, universities, historical figures, kewpie dolls, military and baseball premiums. There is even a special Canadian history series that starts with Cabot’s landing and ends with the 1908 visit of King George.
Perhaps the single most striking item of this collection is a robe and outfit of a Turkish dancer created from novelties and pressed metal coins. “It was never worn. There was no hook and eye in the waistband. It’s all very crisp.”
Adding a local touch to the exhibit, RAM has added a quilt from their collection sewn by Victorine Mercredi Loutit that is dated between 1910 and 1924. Loutit’s husband was the manager of the Hudson Bay store in Fort Chipewyan and assisted her in collecting 600 silks needed to complete the quilt. “Representatives from tobacco companies would visit at Christmas. They put the quilt on their bed and the representatives would see it when they put their coats there.”
The sum total of the exhibit is more than beautiful textiles and the power of marketing. Roy adds one final point. “Prior to this, collecting was viewed as an intellectual pursuit. Collectors worked alone collecting butterflies or coins or books. This changed it to the commercialization of the collecting instinct.”
• Heart and Soul: Quebec Folk Art – Originally designed by the Canadian Museum of Civilization in 2008 to commemorate the 400th anniversary of Quebec City, this touring exhibit showcases the donated collection of art dealer Nettie Covey Sharpe.
Featured in the exhibit are carvings, sculptures, paintings, ceramics and other creations that highlight the traditional rural landscape of la belle province. The oldest dated work is a 1741 set of the Holy Family. That contrasts with a funky contemporary truck built from green Labatt’s bottle caps.
“It’s very specific about the arts and legacy of the province. It’s a legacy outside the city and outside the museums and galleries,” says Linda Tzang, RAM curator of cultural communities.
Covey Sharpe was an anglophone deeply passionate about Quebec’s rural culture. “As a teenager, she would go knock on a door and ask for people’s stuff. She started buying stuff at a time when people were discarding. She only started dealing when her husband got tired of the stuff in the house.”
The rustic collection is extremely eclectic, fashioned by artists often lacking in formal training. There’s a carving of an old man in a chair, a porcupine made from toothpicks, a rooster weather vane and a water dipper decorated with a beaver and fish.
In a more modern vein, artist Ernest Levesque’s life-size woman boxer looks ready to jump out of her glass case. Her bold colours and exaggerated, cartoonish form draws a chuckle from passers-by.
“This is expressive work made from found materials. This is made by you or your neighbours. You don’t feel you need a code book to interpret it.”
The RAM is open Monday to Sunday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and is located at 12845 – 102 Ave. Admission is $5 to $10. Six and under admitted free.
