George Smyth leaves a lasting legacy

Simon Fraser University is mourning the loss of George Smyth, a community leader and dear friend who dedicated the last two decades of his life to raising awareness of Coast Salish art and the artists who are reviving it. He passed away in December at age 80, leaving a lasting legacy across British Columbia and beyond.

Born in Vancouver and raised in Burnaby, George began a distinguished career in technology that took him from Ottawa to Atlanta and London, United Kingdom. After 33 successful years in research and development, he found a new calling in Indigenous art.

In 2003, George and his wife Christiane relocated to Vancouver Island and found themselves drawn to the local contemporary Coast Salish art, unknowingly becoming “activist collectors”—those who acquire art to change the world—in the process. As their passion grew, so did their collection.

Known as the Salish Weave Collection—which draws its name from a carved cedar panel by world-renowned Salish artist Susan Point—the Smyths have since amassed a sizeable number of paintings, prints, drums, sculptures and carvings. To ensure its succession, they also transformed their private collection into a distributed public one. Today, works of the Salish Weave Collection can be found at the National Gallery of Canada in Ottawa, the Museum of Anthropology at the University of British Columbia, the University of Victoria, and here at Simon Fraser University.

In 2010, George and Christiane began their long-standing relationship with SFU with a generous gift from their extensive Salish Weave Collection. Over the years, the Smyths have entrusted SFU with precious works, enabling people in our communities to better understand the region in which they live as well as the strength of Coast Salish artistic lineage. Many of these works are now visible across SFU’s Burnaby and Vancouver campuses, including the walls of SFU Library’s Indigenous Curriculum Resource Centre which features seven works of Susan Point’s “Circles in Time” series.

George had a deep appreciation and love of Indigenous art, and strongly believed in educating the next generation on Indigenous knowledge, artistic practices and techniques. In 2021, the Smyths made a transformative commitment to help Indigenize art education at SFU by supporting the creation of the new Salish Weave Chair in Indigenous Arts Practices and Pedagogies within the Faculty of Education; a full-time curator, Indigenous projects at SFU Galleries; and programming and a public art commission at SFU Library’s Indigenous Curriculum Resource Centre.

The Smyths have also invested in many SFU initiatives devoted to the celebration of Indigenous peoples and cultures, including the development of an Artist-in-Residence program that focused on walking with Indigenous artists and communities to co-develop curriculum and pedagogy for students and teachers; an Indigenous storytelling project centred on how to respectfully include Indigenous stories in the classroom; and much-needed emergency assistance funding for Indigenous students.

Those who knew George will remember him as a highly intelligent and thoughtful individual who made an impact with his kind heart and sense of humour. Both his and Christiane’s far-reaching philanthropy continues to touch lives across the province, and SFU is proud to be custodians of their vision to make a positive difference through art. We wish to extend our sincerest condolences to Christiane and all of George’s dearest family and friends.