Kodiak Archipelago

This is a map of the Kodiak Archipelago. Alphonse Pinart kayaked all through the here on his adventure. Lets remember that these masks aren't that small and compact. This is amazing!

Alutiiq Mask

This is one of the masks of the exhibit. It is amazing to see these masks in person. They are in good shape to be as old as they are. Alphonse Pinart had these masks made in Kodiak and brang them with him in his kayak. Can you imagine that?

Background

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VEUbSfGlPKM

The above link will take you to a youtube video about Alutiiq masks. It shows and tells about the Giinaquq- Like a Face exhibit. It is very educational and interesting. It is cool to see all the different types of masks.

Real People

"When the Russians came, they called everybody in Alaska 'Aleuts,' and that’s a name for indigenous people in Siberia. And so, since we looked like the people in Siberia, dark skin, dark hair, most everybody here in Alaska ended up with the name Aleut. And from that word came the word Alutiiq, and the elders decided we were going to stay with the name Aleut, and so there was a division of what we should call ourselves, so they settled on Alutiiq. But our real name is Sugpiaq, and it means the real people."
- Sugpiaq Artist Helen Simeonoff

This is a really cool quote. I did not know that the Russians called everyone here in Alaska "Aleuts", which is the name for the indigenous people in Siberia. From the word Aleut, the Alaskan Native people came up with Alutiiq. The quote by Helen Simeonoff states that Sugpiaq is their real name and it means real people.

Anchorage Museum

This is the Anchorage Rasmuson Museum. Along with the Giinaquq-Like a Face exhibit, there are all kinds of different Native arts here. It is very cool to go there and learn about the history of Alaska. Also, it gives you a better understanding because you get to see it with your own eyes instead of reading about it in a book.

Chateau Musee

This is an image of the "Kodiak Masks" that were being displayed in Chateau Musee in France. I like this image because it really gives a good idea of how the masks look. They are really painted using only the colors red, black, and white. I also see that the painting has Alphonse Pinaut (1852-1911) French explorer/ archeologist.

More Than Art

Not only did Alphonse Pinaut go around collecting these masks, he also made songs to put with them. He asked for a modeled mask to match each song he wrote. So if you look at the masks, they have their own song. All of the masks were only painted with red, black, or white. The whistling masks were bad luck. These masks were apart of the Sugpiaq peoples everyday life.