"Before I started designing this box, I had been thinking a lot about what Turtle Island looked like pre-colonial contact. I could Invision communities working together, honing their skills and their crafts, in a completely sustainable way with the land, plants and animals. A sort of Utopia, in my mind, except this place actually did exist once.

In this image of pre-contact Turtle Island, no one in the community goes hungry, everyone is warm, loved, and has a roof over their head ... it sounds like dream to me. A dream where an artist could work while being supported by their community and they reciprocate with beautiful art that is rich in culture for everyone to enjoy.

In contrast, I don’t think it needs much explanation when I say its difficult to be a full time Indigenous artist, in a single income household and living in one of the most expensive and socially lonely cities in 2025. This society makes it almost impossible for me to exist and create while still complying with their schedule and social structure.

The feeling I wanted to capture with this bentwood box was a snapshot of that Utopia I could see. Of it absolutely bursting with abundance! I wanted to make a box rich in story, culture, and time spent creating it. To get this feeling across, I chose the salmon. Their life cycle is miraculous and a symbiotic relationship with the plants, animals and humans around it. When that cycle is taken care of their nutrients provide for dozens of species. If taken care of and respected, this cycle will continue for generation as a part of an ecosystem and society bursting with abundance. Abundance from balance.

You can take this example of the salmon and extrapolate it to every living thing on this planet. They/we are all connected and when we take care of each other, no one is forgotten and everyone has (more) than enough to thrive.

This box is a story of what once was of what could be again."

-Meaghan McRae