Master carvers chosen for Kootéeyaa Deiyí (Totem Pole Trail), SHI seeking apprentices
Institute to hold community meetings in Hoonah, Sitka on the project
March 5, 2025
(Apprentice Application) (About Kootéeyaa Deiyí) (About Totem Poles)
Sealaska Heritage Institute (SHI) has chosen two master carvers to make totem poles in Sitka and Hoonah that will be raised in Juneau as part of Kootéeyaa Deiyí (Totem Pole Trail).
The carvers, Nicholas Galanin and Gordon Greenwald, will make Kiks.ádi and Chookaneidí poles in Sitka and Hoonah, respectively, along with apprentices, as part of an effort to grow more Native artists who know how to make kootéeyaa.
SHI is currently recruiting for two apprentices in each community who will be paired with the master carvers. SHI will host meetings in Sitka and Hoonah this month to discuss the project’s goals and objectives and expectations of apprentices.
SHI staff SHI staff realized the need to train more apprentices in totem pole carving in phase one of Kootéeyaa Deiyí, which launched four years ago.
the need to train more apprentices on totem pole carving in phase one of Kootéeyaa Deiyí, which launched four years ago.
“We discovered through this process that there aren’t a lot of master-level totem pole carvers. SHI’s Native Artist Committee considers a person a master artist totem pole carver if they have carved at least five totem poles. With the limited number of master totem pole carvers, the mentor-apprentice arrangement became a vital component of the project,” said SHI President Rosita Ḵaaháni Worl, Ph.D.
In phase one of Kootéeyaa Deiyí, SHI recruited 22 apprentices who assisted with the creation of 12 totem poles that now line Juneau’s waterfront.
According to an SHI survey of more than 220 Northwest Coast artists conducted in 2020, 82% of respondents want training in monumental wood artwork and 6% said they had mentorship abilities in the field.
Apprentices who participate in phase two of Kootéeyaa Deiyí will obtain the specialized skills they need to work with master carvers on monumental pieces and may be eligible for 18 credits toward an Associate of Arts degree with an emphasis on Northwest Coast arts through the University of Alaska Southeast, which offers the world’s only Northwest Coast arts-specific degree.
The community meeting in Sitka is scheduled from 4:30–5:30 pm, March 12, in the executive board room of Sitka Tribe of Alaska. The meeting in Hoonah is scheduled from 4:30–5:30 pm, March 14, at Huna Heritage offices.
About Kootéeyaa Deiyí
In 2022, SHI installed the first 12 of 30 totems for Totem Pole Trail, an initiative launched in 2021 through a $2.9 million grant from the Mellon Foundation. Through the grant, SHI hired 11 Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian artists, including Mick Beasley, David R. Boxley, Nicholas Galanin, Nathan Jackson, Tommy Joseph, Robert Mills, Warren Peele, Jackson Polys, Jon Rowan, Joseph Young and TJ Young.
Apprentices included Raymond “Took” Gregory, Peter Adams, Lea Armour, Lee Burkhart, William L. Burkhart Jr., Andrea Cook, Kristina M. Cranston, Christian Dalton, Joel Delacruz, Jno Didrickson, Tim Flanery, Gregory Tyler Frisby, Clifton Guthrie, Larry Jackson, Merritt Johnson, Norman Daniel Natkong Jr., Theodore O. Peele, Cadence Peele, Jeremy Peterson, Will Peterson, Bill Pfeifer and Rico Worl.
The totem poles serve as an entry point from the Juneau waterfront to Heritage Square, an area encompassing the intersection of Heritage Way and Front Street and surrounding area that was named by the city in 2018. Each totem pole features a corresponding story board that identifies the clan, crests and other information related to the artwork.
About Totem Poles
Northwest Coast art evolved over several thousand years in the rich and complex Indigenous societies of the Pacific Northwest of North America. From the earliest contact with Westerners, wood carvings, weavings and other cultural pieces depicting Northwest Coast art were aggressively collected by museums and visitors and acclaimed as one of the most distinctive and unique art traditions in the world.
One of the most widely known art forms within this tradition is the totem pole (kootéeyaa in Lingít, gyáa’aang in X̱aad Kíl and p’tsaan in Sm’algya̱x). While its exact origins are unclear, scholars have traced the earliest known examples to the Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian of Southeast Alaska, Haida Gwaii and northern British Columbia.
The carved figures depict crests, spirits and designs that symbolize the rich history of clan origins and migrations and significant ancestors who made lasting contributions for their descendants. Carved exclusively of red cedar, totem poles are raised on important occasions such as marriages, the construction of a new clan house or the transfer of historic names and titles from one generation to the next. “Shame poles” were also carved if an individual or clan grievously offended another clan.
Sealaska Heritage Institute is a tribal organization founded in 1980 to perpetuate and enhance Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian cultures of Southeast Alaska. Its goal is to promote cultural diversity and cross-cultural understanding through public services and events. SHI also conducts scientific and public policy research that promotes Alaska Native arts, cultures, history and education statewide. The institute is governed by a Board of Trustees and guided by a Council of Traditional Scholars, a Native Artist Committee and a Southeast Regional Language Committee.
CONTACT: Kathy Dye, SHI Communications and Publications Deputy Director, 907.321.4636, kathy.dye@sealaska.com.
Caption: Apprentice Merritt Johnson in Sitka painting a Kaagwaantaan totem pole led by Nicholas Galanin for phase one of Kootéeyaa Deiyí. Photo by Bethany Goodrich, courtesy of Sealaska Heritage Institute. Note: Media outlets are permitted to use this image for coverage of this story. For a higher-res image, contact kathy.dye@sealaska.com.