The Alutiiq Museum has been awarded an Alaska Art Fund (AAF) grant in the amount of $7,400 to commission a gut jacket from June Pardue for the opening of their new exhibits next year. Their commission fit the guidelines for our rolling deadline due to their museum opening deadline and the artist’s schedule and ability to complete the parka in time for the opening.
Congratulations to the Alutiiq Museum! We were happy to award a grant for such an amazing art commission.
Thank you to our funder and partner in our Alaska Art Fund grant program, Rasmuson Foundation. Funding for grant programs like this support not only museums, but also local artists and economies!
The Fall cycle will open on September 9, 2024.
If you have a time-sensitive request for AAF, the rolling deadline is still open!
More information from their application
The Alutiiq Museums will commission a gut skin jacket from Alutiiq artist June Pardue. The garment will be an adult-sized jacket with a hood—the design used by kayakers. It will be made from bear intestine gifted to June by Alutiiq hunters in her home village of Old Harbor.
The gut skin jacket will allow the museum to display an essential piece of maritime technology with a deep history in the Alutiiq region. These garments are both works of art and examples of the tremendous ecological knowledge and engineering capabilities of Alutiiq ancestors. AMAR has been discussing these garments and showing pictures of historic examples in its interpretive resources. Unfortunately, they don’t yet own one suitable for display. The jacket will be the first they are able to display.
