Shawn Brigman, PhD, is a Spokane Tribal Member and a descendant of the snʕáyckst (Sinixt), ql̓ispé (Kalispel), and Tk̓emlúps te Secwépemc (Shuswap), which are all historically documented as employing bark sturgeon-nose canoes. Since 2012, he has sculpted several ancestral bark sturgeon-nose canoes, one historical canvas sturgeon-nose canoe, and thirty contemporary SALISHAN STURGEON NOSE CANOES—a novel design he established in 2013. As the owner and founder of Spokane-based SALISHAN STURGEON NOSE CANOES, his goals are to increase awareness and opportunities for Plateau canoe artists to teach, preserve, present, and protect the integrity and intellectual property of ancestral bark sturgeon-nose canoes.
