SHI TO SPONSOR LECTURES FOR NATIVE AMERICAN HERITAGE MONTH

Series will focus on Native art

Sealaska Heritage Institute (SHI) will sponsor a noon lecture series to celebrate Native American Heritage Month in November.

The brown-bag lunch series will focus on Native art, said SHI Arts Director Rico Worl. The institute has expanded its art program in recent years to assist artists and to teach the public about Native art, said Worl, adding the lecture series is open to anyone who is interested in the topic.

“The decision to make a more focused effort on arts is to improve the opportunities for artists but also to educate the public—to develop a greater cross-cultural understanding,” Worl said.

The lectures, sponsored by ConocoPhillips Alaska, will be held from 12-1 pm in the 4^th floor boardroom at Sealaska Plaza in Juneau. Attendees are invited to bring their own lunches.

Lectures 12-1 pm, Sealaska Plaza, 4th Floor Boardroom (bring your own lunch)
Tuesday, Nov. 13	On the Origins and Diversity of Northern Northwest Coast Headgear Steve Henrikson Curator of Collections, Alaska State Museum The Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian people are renowned for the spectacular hats and headdresses used by clan leaders, warriors and shamans. With a focus on art history, this presentation will review what is known or surmised about many types and styles of headgear, with an emphasis on some of the earliest hats, the more unusual forms, and those imported from neighboring Native groups.
Tuesday, Nov. 20	Basketry and Alaska Native Art Revival Delores Churchill Haida master weaver and artist This presentation will discussed the revival of Native art during the late twentieth century in communities like Ketchikan and the impact these activities have had for Southeast Alaska Native arts today. The discussion will also focus on Churchill’s own artistic experience as a master weaver
Tuesday, Nov. 27	Three Hundred Years of Tlingit Art Aldona Jonaitis, Ph.D. Emeritus Director, Museum of the North This presentation will overview the history of Tlingit artworks made in the eighteenth century to those created in the twenty-first century. Special attention will be devoted to artist elements that have been consistent over these centuries, and those that have changed.

Sealaska Heritage Institute was founded in 1980 to promote cultural diversity and cross-cultural understanding. The institute is governed by a Board of Trustees and guided by a Council of Traditional Scholars. Its mission is to perpetuate and enhance Tlingit, Haida, and Tsimshian cultures of Southeast Alaska.