Freda Diesing
| Freda Diesing | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Marie Alfreda Johnson 6 February 1925 Prince Rupert, British Columbia |
| Died | 12 April 2002 (aged 77) |
| Nationality | Canadian |
| Education | Vancouver School of Art, Gitanmaax School of Northwest Coast Indian Art |
| Known for | woodcarver, totem carver |
| Movement | Northwest Coast art |
Freda Diesing (2 June 1925 – 4 December 2002) was a Haida woman of the Sadsugohilanes Clan, one of very few female carvers of Northwest Coast totem poles and a member of the Council of the Haida Nation of British Columbia, Canada. Her Haida name is Skil Kew Wat, meaning "magical little woman."
She was born Marie Alfreda Johnson in Prince Rupert, B.C., on 2 June 1925. She studied painting at the Vancouver School of Art and was one of the first students at the Gitanmaax School of Northwest Coast Indian Art ('Ksan) at Hazelton, B.C., in Gitksan territory. There she received instruction from the art historian Bill Holm, and the First Nations artists Tony Hunt (Kwakwaka'wakw) and Robert Davidson (Haida).
Diesing began her carving career when she was 42 years old using traditional formline design. She carved portrait masks and bowls as well as totem poles. She designed ceremonial button blankets and carved wall panels for the Prince Rupert General Hospital. She was part of the major revival in Northwest Coast art in the 1960s.
Her poles include two poles raised at the Tsimshian community of Kitsumkalum near Terrace, B.C., with the assistance of a Tsimshian team, a 1987 pole for the RCMP station in Terrace, and poles in Prince Rupert.
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