Description

This is a spirit mask sculpture created by Inupiaq artist Tom Tiulana of King Island, Alaska. Tiulana specializes in spirit masks set on a base (this one made of animal vertebrae), often with baleen rings around them. He draws from the deep spiritual roots of the King Islanders’ traditional shamanistic religion in which man, animal and earth were all connected. In Alaska, Yup’ik and Inupiaq peoples honor animals in a variety of ceremonies, the most important of which are the great midwinter hunting festivals. Historically, masks carved by shamans or under their supervision were worn in special dances to please the spirits. Tiulana comes from a talented family of artists including his father Paul who taught him to carve and his brothers Justin and Tom.