Sculpture by student selected as official gift for historic Haida Gwaii ceremony

A small copper pine tree made by a Carleton University architecture student was among the ceremonial gifts presented by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to the Haida Nation at a historic gathering on Feb. 17.

The event at Haida Gwaii, off British Columbia’s northern coast, marked the recognition of Aboriginal title over the archipelago by the Haida people who have lived there for millennia. 

Sam Lane-Smith, a Master of Architecture student at the Azrieli School of Architecture & Urbanism, titled the piece Resolute.

“I suspect that they chose it partially due to the fitting name for this occasion, but also how it resembles the great firs and pines of the West Coast,” he says.

Copper carries great symbolic importance locally. Copper deposits are found on the coast and it is used to create objects of status and cultural importance, typically in the form of a shield. Canada’s gift of a copper tree integrated this tradition of the Haida Nation while symbolizing a transformed and constantly growing relationship between nations.

Lane-Smith, who is in his final year of the three-year M.Arch program, has been making small trees from copper wire for six years. He mounts them on stones which he collects, cuts, and polishes. The sculptures have ranged in size from a few inches to nearly three feet high. Resolute is about eight inches tall.

Over the years, he has created hundreds of trees, which are now in homes and private collections worldwide. He sells them through his art practice, Due North Trees, where he uses the surname Sanderson.

“It started as a hobby and a gift for my partner and organically grew into its own practice,” he says. “During COVID I was able to rely on it as my sole income after being laid off and the time I had available allowed me to hone my craft.”

Lane-Smith has delivered commissions for specific projects as well as weddings. Currently, several trees sit at a fine-dining restaurant in Toronto called Enigma Yorkville, which serves desserts nestled in the branches of the trees.

Shortly before the ceremony in Haida Gwaii, he was contacted by a representative of Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada, who expressed interest in purchasing his art for the occasion.

“It is a huge honour to be implicated in a small way in this historic moment,” says Lane-Smith. “While I recognize that this is only a very small step toward reconciliation and reparation, it is important nonetheless.”