“Carving has been my life, all my life here. That’s actually my first job—it’s not a hobby. I learned at a young age.”

 

For over 50 years, Squamish carver Eric Baker has honed his craft from his home on the North Shore of Vancouver. Influenced by the late Bill Reid, Baker began carving at just eight years old under the guidance of Hank Thomas, later learning from his cousins Marv and Dana Baker. A few years later, he joined a carving group where Floyd Joseph and Stan Joseph became key mentors.

 

Baker creates everything from rattles, talking sticks, and masks to his preferred medium: totem poles. Working from his patio on generally smaller pieces, his process is consistent: first studying the shape and details of the wood, then letting it guide him. “Just looking at the wood, holding the wood—it usually tells me where it wants to be.” He then carves using curved tools, knives, and chisels, with handles he makes himself, before finishing each piece with paint. “I tell people my work speaks for itself. Let it talk for itself, and you can like it or not.”

 

Rooted in Squamish heritage, Baker’s work often reflects traditional stories, such as the Sasquatch, and features a signature palette of green, red, and black, accented with white, yellow, and occasional blues or turquoise for masks. “No stress, no nothing here. Just flow, the knife and the spirit.”