Bill Helin
William Herbert Helin spent his pre-teen years in the northern part of the wet coast commercial fishing with his father, Arthur (Hyemass) Helin, until 1979, when a serious accident redirected him into his Native art career.
Bill studied at the famous ‘Ksan Indian Art School of BC’ where he learned traditional design, tool making, wood carving, and jewellery engraving under Tsimshian master artists. In 1987 he studied at the Gemological Institute of America where he learned gemology and gem setting to enhance his story bracelets and wedding rings.
Bill’s clients come from around the globe, and his jewellery has travelled into space on the Shuttle Columbia STS-78 in 1994. Bill has created patch designs for NASA and Canadian-born astronaut Bob Thirsk and will be creating another this year. Other passions include acrylic painting, storybook writing, illustration, sharing his Tsimshian heritage stories and songs, and teaching children the importance of their culture.
Check out Bill’s auction contribution →
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Raincoast’s in-house scientists, collaborating graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and professors make us unique among conservation groups. We work with First Nations, academic institutions, government, and other NGOs to build support and inform decisions that protect aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems, and the wildlife that depend on them. We conduct ethically applied, process-oriented, and hypothesis-driven research that has immediate and relevant utility for conservation deliberations and the collective body of scientific knowledge.
We investigate to understand coastal species and processes. We inform by bringing science to decision-makers and communities. We inspire action to protect wildlife and wildlife habitats.
