Conversation with Artist Nicholas Galanin

What Have We Become? Vol. 5. NIcholas Galanin. Paper: 1000 pages containing text from Under Mount Saint Elias. 2006

What Have We Become? Vol. 5. NIcholas Galanin. Paper: 1000 pages containing text from Under Mount Saint Elias. 2006

 

"Culture cannot be contained as it unfolds. My art enters this stream at many different points, looking backwards, looking forwards, generating its own sound and motion. I am inspired by generations of Tlingit & Unangax̂ creativity and contribute to this wealthy conversation through active curiosity. There is no room in this exploration for the tired prescriptions of the "Indian Art World" and its institutions. Through creating I assert my freedom." -Nicholas Galanin

 

 

Here is the conversation with the Nicholas Galanin:

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Music featured on this episode from the latest Silver Jackson album; Starry Skies Opened Eyes. 
 

More about the artist:

Rumination 3C Print. 2012. Edition of 10. Photographed by Larry Mcneil

Rumination 3
C Print. 2012. Edition of 10. Photographed by Larry Mcneil

Born in Sitka, Alaska, Nicholas Galanin has struck an intriguing balance between his origins and the course of his practice. Having trained extensively in ‘traditional’ as well as ‘contemporary’ approaches to art, he pursues them both in parallel paths. His stunning bodies of work simultaneously preserve his culture and explore new perceptual territory. Galanin studied at the London Guildhall University, where he received a Bachelor’s of Fine Arts with honors in Jewelry Design and Silversmithing and at Massey University in New Zealand earning a Master’s degree in Indigenous Visual Arts. Valuing his culture as highly as his individuality, Galanin has created an unusual path for himself. He deftly navigates “the politics of cultural representation”, as he balances both ends of the aesthetic spectrum. With a fiercely independent spirit, Galanin has found the best of both worlds and has given them back to his audience in stunning form. He is also renowned for his musical performances and production as Indian Nick and with Silver Jackson, and is co-founder of Homeskillet Records and Homeskillet Fest, an annual summer music festival in his hometown, Sitka, Alaska.

The American Dream Is Alie And Well. Nicholas Galanin. US Flag, felt, .50 Cal Ammunition, Foam, Gold Leaf, Plastic. 2012

The American Dream Is Alie And Well. Nicholas Galanin. US Flag, felt, .50 Cal Ammunition, Foam, Gold Leaf, Plastic. 2012

Things Are Looking Native, Native's Looking Whiter. Nicholas Galanin. Giclée. 2012

Things Are Looking Native, Native's Looking Whiter. Nicholas Galanin. Giclée. 2012

I Think it Goes Like This. Nicholas Galanin. Wood, Paint. 2012

I Think it Goes Like This. Nicholas Galanin. Wood, Paint. 2012

Modicum. Leonard Getinthecar (Nicholas Galanin & Jerrod Galanin). Disposable coffee cups, riot gear, mannequin, names of non-white people killed extra-judicially by law enforcement officers in the United States, paint. 2014

Modicum. Leonard Getinthecar (Nicholas Galanin & Jerrod Galanin). Disposable coffee cups, riot gear, mannequin, names of non-white people killed extra-judicially by law enforcement officers in the United States, paint. 2014


Inert. Nicholas Galanin. Wolf, felt. 2009

Inert. Nicholas Galanin. Wolf, felt. 2009

www.galan.in
www.silverjackson.com
www.homeskilletfest.com

"I'd like to give a shout out to everyone consciously working towards making this world a better place for us all, to my family & children and to the Black Constellation" -Nicholas Galanin