Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Alaska Natives

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9b/Inuit_man_1906.jpg

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alaska_Natives

The picture above shows an Inuit man from the early 1900's. Since this picture was professionally done, it could depict many aspects, it could depict how Alaska Natives really are, or how Alaska Natives are precieved. Which leads to my other link. The other link I have is of Wikipedia, although it's a dictionary, it has alot of good information on Alaska Natives. It also has other links to information about Alaska Natives.
This concludes of how we need to research our information. We need to look beyond our stereotypes of cultures, and research what we are learning about. The more we learn, the more we can precieve what is true. That is why I am slowly trying to get you to research different ideas of about Sugpiaq masks, but trying to explore other cultures as well.

Sunday, November 16, 2008

http://masksfromaroundtheworld.ca/home.htm

I apologize for just putting up links, but I am not the best with computers.

This link is an awesome link about different masks around the world, but the thing I find fascinating is, how Alphonese Pinart and Garth Dahl traveled to pick up artifacts and also to see how other cultures work; especially about masks. Their journeys are about a hundred years apart, so they will have their differences, but I think they both had the same idea of enriching their lives with culture.
Since I have been doing the research on the masks, it has opened up my eyes to other cultures. People like Alphonese Pinart and Garth Dahly, obviously opened up their eyes to cultures besides their own. So it's a good eye opener, to look beyond your own culture, to see others, and to understand all cultures have similarties and differences. I would encourage you to look beyound your culture and to learn more about others.

Friday, November 14, 2008

http://alutiiqmuseum.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=blogcategory&id=35&Itemid=103#
If you can believe, this mask was carved by a teenage student. It was inspired by the exhibit: Like A Mask, the same exhibit that is currently showing at the Anchorage Museum for a short amount of time. These masks were unheard of for hundreds of years, so it’s an exciting time for the Sugpiaq, to learn more about their culture, and then pass it down to the younger generation. This is an example of teaching the younger generation, to appreciate what was lost.

Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Sugpiaq Masks November 12

http://alaska.si.edu/culture_sugpiaq.asp

This site is chalk full of information about Alaska Natives, but the one I'd like to highlight is about the Sugpiaq. We are currently learning about the Sugpiaq in one of my courses for college, also we are learning about the masks that were found by a french man in the late 1700's early 1800's. These masks were preserved in France, and now after many years have come back to Alaska to be show cased in the Anchorage Museum for just a short while. It's a big deal for the Sugpiaq to see these masks and learn more about their culture. In the next couple weeks I will be sharing more information about these subjects.