canadian fishing trip

canadian fishing trip
What does the illustration on the back of a Canadian $20 mean? It's a strange canoe trip!!?

The hat on the fellow in the middle of the boat looks faintly Japanese.One of the bird-beaked creatures in the boat is biting the hand of the overweight person (?) perched on the bow. Nobody looks happy. I can't make out the yellow circle behind the boat, but there appears to be a large fish with someone or some thing on it's back in the air on the right of the boat.

The reverse side depicts artworks by Bill Reid, notably his sculptures Raven and the First Men and Spirit of Haida Gwaii

Raven and the First Men - The sculpture of The Raven and the First Men depicts the story of human creation. According to Haida legend, the Raven found himself alone one day on Rose Spit beach in Haida Gwaii (formerly the Queen Charlotte Islands). He saw an extraordinary clamshell and protruding from it were a number of small human beings. The Raven coaxed them to leave the shell to join him in his wonderful world. Some of the humans were hesitant at first but, overcome by curiosity, they eventually emerged from the partly open giant clamshell to become the first Haida.

Spirit of Haida Gwaii- The Canadian Embassy describes the work as follows: "The canoe contains both Raven and Eagle, women and men, a rich man and a poorer man, and animals as well as human beings. Is it fair, then to see in it an image not only of one culture but of the entire family of living things? Not all is peace and contentment in this crowded boat. . . . But whatever their differences, they are paddling together, in one boat, headed in one direction."

2007 Canada Fly-In Fishing Trip