Alutiiq Museum acquires two new pieces from local artists

The Alutiiq Museum is the recipient of two new works of art by local artists, including a rattle which will be the first of its kind in the museum’s permanent collection.  Funds for the purchases came from a Rasmuson Foundation grant designed to support living, practicing Alaska artists.

The first is a modern interpretation of a traditional puffin beak rattle by Alutiiq artist Hanna Sholl. The other is a lively art pencil drawing of an octopus by Stacy Studebaker.

 

 

Amanda Lancaster is the collections and facilities manager for the museum. She says a unique aspect of the two additions is the fact that both pieces are contemporary, which is more defined by age than by a certain style.

Lancaster spoke with KMXT’s Maggie Wall.

 

“W: Now does having them be alive, does that add a different element to the art? Does that make them more modern or more…?

L: You know I don’t really know the reasoning behind that. But that definitely an effect.

W: As opposed to something from the 1800s which would look old. Right? 

L: I think the Rasmuson Foundation is really looking to grow contemporary art within Alaska museums.

W: And so what do they do to define contemporary? What does that mean?

L: Well, you know, it has to be made within the last three years. So that’s probably the thing that really makes it contemporary.”

 

As to the art itself, Sholl’s puffin rattle might remind some of a tambourine with its round, steam bent hoop and 23 dangling deer hooves. While hoop rattles were known to be used in Kodiak, they are an art all but lost to the past.  This modern version is the first hoop rattle in the museum’s collection.

 

“Hanna’s pieces is really, really interesting because there aren’t rattles. We don’t have any examples of rattles. This is a very old Alutiiq tradition that she is reawakening. No one has made these rattles in over a century on Kodiak, so her rattle is really special. She doesn’t sell them, you know, to the public so it was really nice for us to be able to acquire one. It was very generous of her to offer it. We have fragments and we have images, and some historical accounts of them, but we don’t any complete rattles at all.”

 

Another interesting thing about Sholl’s rattle is the use of deer hooves.

 

“Traditionally they were made with puffin beaks, but since they are protected now Hanna substituted deer hooves, which is a really interesting choice because deer are a recent addition to Kodiak but they have become a very important means of subsistence. So it’s a really interesting substitution that she made.”

 

Biologist Stacy Studebaker joins Bruce Nelson, who previously had a piece added to the museum’s collection. While both are non-Native, Lancaster explains that their ocean-oriented art speaks to the Native way of life and are important additions to the museum.

 

“So Stacy’s piece, and we also got a piece from Bruce Nelson last year, they depict the sort of environment around which Alutiiq people would be familiar with. So Stacy’s piece has an octopus and it has pieces of from the inter-tidal zone.

And these are things that Alutiiq people would be familiar with and have used for subsistence for many, many years. And same thing for Bruce Nelson’s piece as well. And, so, while they may not be Alutiiq their art definitely does contribute to our mission because it does show how Alutiiq people have lived over time.”