First Nations Artist Andy Everson at Tribal Spirit Gallery for the Book Signing of I Am Raven

Langley, BC, Canada, November 24, 2007 --(PR.com)-- First Nations artist Andy Everson will be making an appearance at Tribal Spirit Gallery to sign I Am Raven, the new book written by best-selling author David Bouchard and illustrated by Andy Everson. Each book will be signed by both artist and author.

David Bouchard's books have won several prestigious awards, among them: the Governor General's Award for The Song Within My Heart in 2004, the Lee Bennett Hopkins Poetry award for Voices from the Wild in 1997, the Red Cedar Award for The Great Race in 1999 and the Amelia Frances Howard-Gibbon award for illustration for The Dragon New Year in 1999. His books have been short-listed many times for Canada's most outstanding awards, among them: the Mr. Christie Award for The Great Race in 1997, the Governor General's Award for The Great Race in 1997 and for The Dragon New Year in 1998, the Sheila A. Egoff Children's Book Prize for If You're not from the Prairie in 1996, the Silver Birch Award for If You're not from the Prairie in 1996, Voices from the Wild in 1997, If Sarah Will Take Me in 1998 and for A Barnyard Bestiary, the Hackamatack Award and the Rocky Mountain Award, both in 2000.

Andy Everson was born in Comox, BC in 1972 and named Nagedzi after his grandfather, the late Chief Andy Frank. Influenced heavily by his grandmother, he has always been driven to uphold the traditions of both the K'omoks and Kwakwaka’wakw First Nations. In this regard, Andy has pursued avenues where he can sing traditional songs and perform ceremonial dances at potlatches and in a number of different dance groups, most notably the Le-La-La Dancers and the K’umugwe Dancers.

Pursuing other areas of traditional culture has also led Andy to complete a Master’s degree in anthropology. Because the Comox First Nation lies on the border between the larger Salish and Kwakwaka’wakw realms, his thesis focused on notions and expressions of contemporary Comox identity. His work in anthropology provided him with a background in linguistics which subsequently inspired him to create a company, Copper Canoe, Inc, that specializes in the creation of Aboriginal language CD-ROMs.

Established in 2005, Tribal Spirit Gallery is the only native art destination in the Fraser Valley. With an authentic display of Northwest Coast native artifacts, complete with engaging stories from the native artists, the Gallery has become more like a tourist destination. In addition to prints, carvings, clothing, jewelry, and affordable gifts, the Tribal Spirit Gallery holds cultural events and runs gallery tours. The gallery has 3000 square feet of gallery space in Downtown Langley, displaying some of the largest totem poles in the Greater Vancouver Area, with one reaching as tall as 18 feet. With a natural ambiance, complete with soothing sounds of the outdoors, the Tribal Spirit Gallery attracts visitors from across the region and around the world.

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