Northwest Coast

Knowledge Within: Treasures of the Northwest Coast looks into seventeen of the numerous sites in the Pacific Northwest region with major collections of Northwest Coast Indigenous material culture, bringing attention to a wide range of approaches to caring for and exhibiting such treasures. Each chapter is written by one or more people who work or worked in the organization they write about. Each author takes a different approach to the invitation to reflect upon their institution: some narrate a history of the institution, some focus on particular pieces in the collection, and some consider the significance of the work currently being done for the present and future. They show that these are places and moments in a much longer story, still ongoing, with many characters – communities, individuals, institutions, artworks, treasures.

Hardcover

Published in 2022

Inseparable from its communities, Northwest Coast art functions aesthetically and performatively, from demonstrating kinship connections to manifesting spiritual power. By centering voices that uphold Indigenous priorities, integrating the expertise of Indigenous knowledge holders about their artistic heritage, and questioning current institutional practices, these essays “unsettle” Northwest Coast art studies. The volume exemplifies respectful and relational engagement with Indigenous art and advocates for more accountable scholarship and practices within the discipline of art history.

Katherine Bunn-Marcuse is director of the Bill Holm Center for the Study of Northwest Native Art, curator of Northwest Native art at the Burke Museum, and associate professor of art history at the University of Washington.

Aldona Jonaitis is the former Director of the University of Alaska Museum of the North and a professor of Anthropology at the University of Alaska Fairbanks.

Published in 2020
Softcover

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