Food bowl: Frigate bird with shark

20th century

A sequence of species in a food chain is commemorated in this bowl. In a season that lasts from November to April, fishermen watch for frigate birds, who follow schools of small bait fish and are signals that a school of bonito is coming. As the bonito and bait fish stir up whirlpools of frothy activity, sharks swarm behind and devour the residue. This vessel merges two species in their cycle of consumption and that serve humans in feasts.

Wood with inlaid mother-of-pearl

8 7/8 x 9 1/4 x 28 1/4 in. (22.54 x 23.5 x 71.8cm)

Eugene Fuller Memorial Collection

65.24

Now on view at the Seattle Art Museum

Resources

Exhibition HistorySeattle, Washington, Seattle Art Museum, Pacific Species, Dec. 12, 2022 - ongoing.

Seattle Art Museum respectfully acknowledges that we are on Indigenous land, the traditional territories of the Coast Salish people. We honor our ongoing connection to these communities past, present, and future.

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