Becker, Joe (1943 - Jan 2014)

Becker was a self-taught artist, well known for his wood carving and Salish designs. His early life on the Fraser River led to a career as a fisherman, but he began experimenting with carving in the early 1960s. He moved home to Musqueam as an adult and began focusing on producing art in the traditional Coast Salish style. Some of the highlights of his career included working on the Coast Salish Longhouse at the Canadian Museum of Civilization and creating over 400 talking sticks for VANOC during the Vancouver Winter Olympics. He received several other large commissions, including a mural project (2007) at the University of British Columbia. [Bio information from the Lattimer Gallery website.]