It was a delight to start the summer with a visit to Ottawa to celebrate the opening of the exhibition Qillaniq at the National Gallery of Canada. Qillaniq is an Inuktitut word that describes the shimmering of light of the sun or moon on the water. I had the pleasure of being part of the curatorial team for this exhibition alongside Taqralik Partridge, Laakkuluk Williamson, Jocelyn Piirainen, Ooleepeeka Eegeesiak, and Liisa-Rávná Finbog. Since 2024, our curatorial team met weekly to build the exhibition content, and it was amazing to finally see it come to life. The exhibition includes over 70 artists from throughout the circumpolar region and celebrates Indigenous connections to the land and family, radical joy and resistance. Alaska is well represented in this exhibit including many of our own steering committee members: Erin Ggaadimits Ivalu Gingrich, Melissa Shaginoff, Sonya Kelliher-Combs, Anna Hoover and Drew Michael. Other Alaskans involved include Kunaq Tahbone, Emily Johnson, Joel Isaak, Kathleen Carlo, Tanya Lukin-Linklater, Amber Webb, Rebecca Lyons, and the late Jenny Irene. These artists all serve as ambassadors for Alaska in this international exhibition, sharing the richness of our cultures through their expressions. If you have the chance to travel to Ottawa this summer, I hope you can stop by the National Gallery of Canada to see this exhibition. The museum is always free for Indigenous people: https://www.gallery.ca/whats-on/exhibitions-and-galleries/qillaniq 

Following the exhibition opening, I was honored to join a delegation of Alaska at the Arctic Arts Summit in Sweden. This gathering was a three-day event that provided opportunities for knowledge sharing among circumpolar artists and arts organizations through panel discussions, exhibitions and performances. I left feeling inspired by the artists that I met, the conversations I heard, the beauty of Sapmi lands, and the many fresh ideas for new collaborations that came out of this gathering. Gathering like this was a reminder that art has the power to build relationships. Art connects us. Art gives us joy. 

Back home in Alaska, I am excited to work on the development of ANAF’s Resistance exhibition with Drew Michael, Clover Snelling, Melissa Shaginoff and Erin Gingrich. The exhibition, which is scheduled to open in October, will showcase the work of 24 artists whose work responds to the theme. The Alaska Native Arts Foundation is grateful to the Atwood Foundation for becoming an exhibition supporter, and we deeply appreciate the initial project support for this project from the Henry Luce Foundation and Native Movement. Stay tuned for more details as this exhibit develops.  

We have also been busy organizing the 2026 Alaska Native Arts Workshop series. Upcoming workshops include a porcupine quill techniques workshop with Emma Hildebrand, a stone oil lamp carving workshop with Ayyu Qassataq, a beaded glass ball workshop with Courtney Griechen, and more to come. Please reach out if you have a workshop idea that you would like to see offered, or if you would like to teach! Funding support from the Sinew Fund, the Alaska State Council on the Arts and Creative West help to make these workshops possible. We are so thankful to our funders and project partners for supporting Alaska Native artists and helping us to increase visibility of Alaska Native art and artists.  

The Alaska Native Arts Foundation has loved having a summer intern with us for the past few weeks through the First Alaskans Institute’s internship program. Mikayla Mitchell has been working on creating social media posts and blogs for the Foundation. She has also been helping with artist outreach efforts, especially in Southeast Alaska, and helping with our grant writing efforts. Thank you Mikayla for joining us and sharing all your great ideas and energy with ANAF this summer!   

Last but not least, the Alaska Native Arts Foundation is pleased to be in partnership with the Drew Michael Artist Residency through the Anchorage Museum. The first visiting artist to be part of this residency will come to Alaska this fall. We look forward to sharing more about this in our next update. Until then, I wish you all a happy summer subsistence season.  

Joel Isaak standing near his installation, Honoring the Ordinary, at the National Gallery of Canada 

Qillaniq Curatorial Panel at the Arctic Art Summit, with Drew Michael, Jocelyn Piirainen, Ooleepeeka Eegeesiak, and Nadia Jackinsky-Sethi 

Kathleen Carlo-Kendall’s painting Breaking into my Father’s Country, is currently on loan from the Anchorage Museum in the Qillaniq exhibition. 

Scene from the streets of Umeå, Sweden during the 2026 Arctic Art Summit