Are you looking for souvenir ideas for your museum store? The Audain Art Museum in Whistler BC is amongst the many museums that we’ve worked with, and we would like to share the story behind some of our favorite pieces. Please read on to learn about the inspiration behind the design of some of those museum gifts.

Audain Art Museum Shop

We had the pleasure of collaborating with the Audain Art Museum on a number of custom designs that are now sold in the Audain Art Museum boutique. The Audain Art Museum, located in Whistler BC, showcases the art of British Columbia from the late 18th century to present. Amongst the many artworks, the museum features a large collection of First Nations works by some of Canada’s most celebrated artists.

James Hart

James Hart, artist of Haida Heritage is recognized within the community for his successful artwork that incorporates Haida traditions merged with experimental elements. Shown in the museum is one of Hart’s most impressive carved cedar sculptures, named The Dance Screen (The Scream Too). Its great size makes it so that it becomes a central piece within the Museum. When the Audain Art Museum approached us, looking for a scarf to be featured in their museum gift shop that would represent the importance of the sculpture we were more than happy to take on the challenge. We took inspiration from the details found in the sculpture, and came up with a design that we felt honored the fascinating artwork. In our design, we created an outline of the sculpture, and put that outline on a white background so that the details of the design would really stand out. The result of this intricate design was placed onto a 100% silk scarf. See the pictures below of the sculpture and scarf side by side to see the transformation!

Xwalacktun

 The next scarf and tie that we had the chance to design were in collaboration with Xwalacktun. We took inspiration from his He-yay meymuy (Big Flood), a large aluminum sculpture placed at the entrance of the Audain Art Museum, which represents the Coast Salish legend of the Great Flood when people took refuge on Mount Garibaldi (Nch’kay). These souvenir ideas, inspired by the Big Flood sculpture, incorporate the dramatic shadings of the metal with its powerful imagery into the design for the tie and scarf. See the pictures that show the design transformations from sculpture to scarf and tie.

Emily Carr

With a strong interest in First Nations subject matter, Emily Carr often painted images of their visual culture by depicting canoes and totem poles that she had seen when visiting the Kwakwaka’wakw village of ‘Yalis (Alert Bay) on Cormorant Island. In her, War Canoes, Alert Bay, 1912 Carr uses vivid colors and creates strong contrasts between these. With the silk scarf that we designed based on this painting, we wanted to exhibit this successful use of color. See below both the artwork and our custom designed scarf.

For remarkable and unique souvenir ideas for your museum store, Monsoon Corporate gifts has the expert skill and craftsmanship you need. Our passionate team works with you every step of the way to ensure the best reflection of your vision and an elegant design. Looking for museum store gifts for your next exhibition? Please consult with us about how we can assist you.