Nathan Jackson (artist)

Nathan Jackson (born August 29, 1938^[1]) is an American artist. He is among the most important living Tlingit artists^[2] and the most important Alaskan artists.^[3] He is best known for his totem poles, but works in a variety of media.

Jackson belongs to the Sockeye clan on the Raven side of the Chilkoot Tlingit.^[1] As a young adult, he served in the military in Germany, and then became involved in commercial fishing.^[1] While ill with pneumonia and unable to fish, he began to carve miniature totem poles.^[1] His interest in art was piqued, and he enrolled in the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, New Mexico.^[1] Since then, Jackson's work has included large totem poles, canoes, carved doors, wood panel clan crests, masks, and jewelry.^[1] Jackson has worked to pass on traditional Tlingit carving skills to younger artists, and has offered many demonstrations and workshops in Alaska and the Pacific Northwest.^[1]

Jackson has created more than 50 totem poles,^[4] some of which are on display in the National Museum of the American Indian,^[5] the Field Museum in Chicago,^[6] Harvard University's Peabody Museum,^[7] and other museums in the United States, Europe, and Japan.^[1] Other totem poles stand outside Juneau Douglas High School,^[8] Juneau's Centennial Hall,^[8][9] in Juneau's Sealaska Building,^[8] in Totem Bight State Historical Park,^[10] at the Alaska Native Heritage Center,^[3] at Saxman Totem Park,^[11] and at the Totem Heritage Center in Ketchikan.^[9] He is a recipient of a National Endowment for the Arts National Heritage Fellowship (1995),^[1] a Rasmuson Foundation Distinguished Artist Award (2009),^[12][13] and an honorary doctorate in humanities from the University of Alaska Southeast.^[1]

Jackson currently resides in Ketchikan, Alaska.^[14] His wife and son are also artists.^[6]

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d e f g h i j} "Nathan Jackson". National Endowment for the Arts. http://www.nea.gov/honors/heritage/fellows/fellow.php?id=1995_07&type=bio. Retrieved April 2, 2011. 
2. ^ "Contemporary artists: Tlingit". American Museum of Natural History. http://www.amnh.org/exhibitions/totems/contemporary/tlingit.php. Retrieved April 2, 2011. 
3. ^ ^{a b} Dunham, Mike (August 31, 2010). "Tlingit 'peace' headpiece now in Juneau museum". Juneau Empire. http://juneauempire.com/stories/083110/loc_702538776.shtml. 
4. ^ Rennicke, Jeff (May/June 2008). "Totem poles". Via. http://www.viamagazine.com/attractions/totem-poles. 
5. ^ "Kaats (depicting the story of a man who lived with a bear family)". National Museum of the American Indian. http://www.nmai.si.edu/searchcollections/item.aspx?irn=280007&catids=0&areaid=16&src=1-1&size=75&page=12. Retrieved April 2, 2011. 
6. ^ ^{a b} "Field Museum's new totem pole erected". MSNBC.com (Associated Press). April 2, 2007. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17919655/ns/travel-destination_travel/. 
7. ^ "NAGPRA in the Museum GalleriesNAGPRA in the Museum Galleries". Peabody Museum. http://www.peabody.harvard.edu/node/313. Retrieved April 2, 2011. 
8. ^ ^{a b c} "A list of local totem poles". Juneau Empire. August 26, 2010. http://juneauempire.com/stories/082610/art_700570930.shtml. 
9. ^ ^{a b} Hilary Stewart (1993). Looking at totem poles. Douglas & McIntyre. pp. 183. ISBN 9781550540741. http://books.google.com/books?id=WSueEr81v0IC&pg=PA183. 
10. ^ "Totem Poles at Totem Bight State Historical Park". Alaska Division of Parks and Outdoor Recreation. http://dnr.alaska.gov/parks/units/totempol.htm. Retrieved April 2, 2011. 
11. ^ Holing, Dwight (February 22, 1987). "Totems speak of another way". Milwaukee Journal: p. H1. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=0mUaAAAAIBAJ&sjid=iCoEAAAAIBAJ&pg=6877,4938021. 
12. ^ Stalzer, Cassandra (May 15, 2009). "Nathan Jackson receives $25,000 Distinguished Artist Award; Foundation Also Names Eight Fellows, 17 Project Grants". Rasmuson Foundation. http://www.rasmuson.org/PressRelease/index.php?switch=view_pressrelease&iReleaseID=206. Retrieved April 2, 2011. 
13. ^ Dunham, Mike (May 16th, 2009). "Rasmuson Grants are announced". Anchorage Daily News. http://www.adn.com/2009/05/16/798087/rasmuson-grants-are-announced.html. 
14. ^ "Nathan Jackson receives $25,000 Distinguished Artist Award". Capital City Weekly. May 20, 2009. http://www.capitalcityweekly.com/stories/052009/new_442015051.shtml. Retrieved April 3, 2011. 

Persondata
Name	Jackson, Nathan
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	August 29, 1938
Place of birth
Date of death
Place of death