I'd intended to photograph this guy many times (I see him often), but the thing is, you have to turn right at the traffic circle instead of my usual left, and then purposely come back the other way and stop on the side road behind the traffic circle in order to reach him. So, while he's in plain sight, he's out of the way for stopping. I've always put it off for another day or for a day when the sky was better (whatever that might mean). In this case it was raining slightly, but it seems the old Indian was quite photogenic in the rain.
The plaque reads:Whispering Giant
Ikala Nawan
Sculptor Peter Wolf Toth
This 57th Statue honors the Clatsop,
Chinook, and all the Northwest
Coastal Indians
Dedicated December 1987
Dedicated December 1987
Cedar log donated by ITT/Rayonier
12 comments:
That's very cool. I don't remember seeing him the couple of times I've been there. Thanks. I want him or his cousin to live in my front yard.
very nice shot! it´s an amazing work of art, very beautiful. do you possibly know why " whispering"?
Great monument, I'm wondering how tall this guy is. I should visit Astoria one of these days. Thanks for sharing =)
Amazing statue, this is a real surprise and a nice work of art. Does it really whisper?
Amazing statue, nice monument, lol @ VP. I guess that if you've had a couple of bottles of Chianti it will whisper...
Excellent photos, Sheryl; especially the first one. In the second one, he looks truncated...which he is, of course, with no torso, etc., to speak of.
Wonder what that is on top of his head.
Glad you stopped!
How intriguing I wish we has points of interest like that in my town!
It sure was controversial when it went up. The trouble is that I believe it doesn't remotely look like a Clatsop Indian. It has also been given a number of lewd nicknames. I actually enjoy seeing it every time I drive past.
I like this monument. I've seen it the few times I've been through. It seems natural living here in the Pacific Northwest where the Native American heritage is so strong.
I'm glad you finally stopped to take the picture, despite the inconvenience! I have several "someday" shots like that as well. The first photo is gorgeous. Is he weathered wood, or stone?
I remember when they put him up, the whole town was wondering about it. It was erected when i was a goofy teenager, so a friend and i climed up it and put a red ball cap on it. It was there for quite sometime. Even then we did not damage it, we had some respect for our town.
The passage of time hasn't made it anymore appealing. There sure was a lot of resistance to it when it was put up--Back then the current political climate regarding salmon caused a lot of aggravation to Astoria and people werent happy Chief Condom was sneering at them
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