Left: Alaskan coastal brown bear, July of this year
Right: Teddy Bear, who has been with me since sometime in '53.
My mother could not remember when Teddy Bear came into my life or who gave him to me, but he has some interesting characteristics. First, he's is a Chiltern Ting-a-Ling bear, meaning he was made at the Chiltern Toy Company in the UK; the "ting-a-ling" refers to a bellows-type music box embedded in the abdomen that, when squeezed, plays "Rock-a-by Baby." His music still plays perfectly, but through the years his original foot pads wore away so my mother meticulously replaced them with some leftover upholstery fabric that has in turn withstood the ages.
But what strikes me, now that I'm so well-acquainted with how grizzly bears actually look, is how realistic Teddy Bear's face is. Most modern "stuffies" show little verisimilitude to their wild cousins, but I think Teddy Bear truly does! All the photos I've seen of other Chiltern bears are slightly different one from the other, and I would bet they were hand made. Whoever made my Teddy Bear must have been inspired by a real European brown bear!
Tags: Teddy bear Chiltern Ting-a-Ling Bear Alaskan coastal brown bear
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Museum signage:
"Amber Webb (b. 1984)
Pelatuq Salmon #5-with Ayyuq, 2022
Ink on wood
Amber Webb is a Yup’ik artist, activist, and storyteller who grew up in the Dillingham area of Southwest Alaska. She shares:
Pelatuq is the Yugtun word for the Russian head scarf that so many of us have made ours. Salmon and women have historically been treated as resources. The fishing industry fueled the oppression of our people, but we found ways to survive through genocide and erasure. We keep coming back just like the salmon do because we are part of their environment and they are a part of us.”
Gallery sign:
"Salmon Culture
Salmon Culture celebrates the connections between salmon and Alaska Native peoples through contemporary, historical and archeological works of art. This exhibition honors salmon as a resources that has nourished our communities physically and spiritually for thousands of years.
As shared by exhibition advisory circle member, Erin Gingrich: “Salmon are gifts, every single one a blessing. The continuity of their ancient cycle is something we owe to the past, present, and future – not just our own future, but the futures of all that have a part in this ecosystem.
When we share about salmon, we are sharing about family, food, love. We are celebrating a fish that unites us across generations and cultures.
This exhibition is organized by a circle of Alaska Native salmon people: Anna Hoover, Nadia Jackinsky-Sethi, Erin Ggaadimits Ivalu Gingrich, Rochelle Adams, Drew Michael, and Ilegvak Peter Williams. We invite you to celebrate salmon with us."
Anchorage Museum, Anchorage Alaska
Tags: Anchorage Museum Anchorage Alaska USA Amber Webb Pelatuq Salmon #5-with Ayyuq Salmon Culture
© All Rights Reserved
Museum signage:
"John Hoover (1919-2002, American)
Salmon Spirit Mask, c. 1980
Wood, oil paint, glass beads"
Gallery sign:
"Salmon Culture
Salmon Culture celebrates the connections between salmon and Alaska Native peoples through contemporary, historical and archeological works of art. This exhibition honors salmon as a resources that has nourished our communities physically and spiritually for thousands of years.
As shared by exhibition advisory circle member, Erin Gingrich: “Salmon are gifts, every single one a blessing. The continuity of their ancient cycle is something we owe to the past, present, and future – not just our own future, but the futures of all that have a part in this ecosystem.
When we share about salmon, we are sharing about family, food, love. We are celebrating a fish that unites us across generations and cultures.
This exhibition is organized by a circle of Alaska Native salmon people: Anna Hoover, Nadia Jackinsky-Sethi, Erin Ggaadimits Ivalu Gingrich, Rochelle Adams, Drew Michael, and Ilegvak Peter Williams. We invite you to celebrate salmon with us."
Anchorage Museum, Anchorage Alaska
Tags: Anchorage Museum Anchorage Alaska USA John Hoover Salmon Spirit Mask Salmon Culture
© All Rights Reserved
Paola Pivi (b. 1971)
Urethane foam, metal, plastic and feathers
Left-to-right
Boo, 2020
Mama no more diapers please, 2014
Freaking Yoga, 2016
Museum signage:
"Animals are often cast as protagonists in Italian artist Paola Pivi’s work. By staging animal subjects in strange or unexpected environments and often anthropomorphizing them, Pivi prompts reflection on human behavior and relationships to the natural world. In Pivi’s art, polar bears practice yoga, hang from trapezes, and goof around."
Gallery sign:
"Art of the NORTH
For centuries, the North has been idealized and romanticized as a place of myth, a wilderness and a frontier, where nature is more visible, beautiful and remote.
Yet the landscape of the North is entwined with cultural identity, history, memory, spirituality, and diverse human interaction—a complex environment rich with layers of local and Indigenous knowledge.
Art has reflected both these inside and outside views.
As the frontier ideal encounters global awareness and a rapidly-changing environment, the landscape of the North is connected, pivotal, and conflicted, both romantic and real.
Representations of the North depict awe-inspiring views and everyday life, pose questions about contemporary issues, and imagine what the future landscape might look like.
The art of the North is the art of place, revealing many points of view. "
Anchorage Museum, Anchorage Alaska
Tags: Anchorage Museum Anchorage Alaska USA Paola Pivi Boo Freaking Yoga Mama no more diabpers please
© All Rights Reserved
Paola Pivi (b. 1971)
Mama no more diapers please, 2014
Urethane foam, metal, plastic and feathers
Museum signage:
"Animals are often cast as protagonists in Italian artist Paola Pivi’s work. By staging animal subjects in strange or unexpected environments and often anthropomorphizing them, Pivi prompts reflection on human behavior and relationships to the natural world. In Pivi’s art, polar bears practice yoga, hang from trapezes, and goof around."
Gallery sign:
"Art of the NORTH
For centuries, the North has been idealized and romanticized as a place of myth, a wilderness and a frontier, where nature is more visible, beautiful and remote.
Yet the landscape of the North is entwined with cultural identity, history, memory, spirituality, and diverse human interaction—a complex environment rich with layers of local and Indigenous knowledge.
Art has reflected both these inside and outside views.
As the frontier ideal encounters global awareness and a rapidly-changing environment, the landscape of the North is connected, pivotal, and conflicted, both romantic and real.
Representations of the North depict awe-inspiring views and everyday life, pose questions about contemporary issues, and imagine what the future landscape might look like.
The art of the North is the art of place, revealing many points of view. "
Anchorage Museum, Anchorage Alaska
Tags: Anchorage Museum Anchorage Alaska USA Paola Pivi Mama no more diapers please
© All Rights Reserved