Sealaska Heritage Institute (SHI) will open its fourth Juried Art Show on Wednesday and announce winners of its biennial Native art competition.

SHI received applications from 33 Native artists who submitted 69 pieces for consideration. Forty-two pieces by 27 artists were chosen for inclusion in the show.

The awards ceremony is scheduled 4:30 pm to 6:30 pm, Wednesday, June 2, at the Juneau Arts and Culture Center. The show will run through June 27. Winners will receive seven prizes in the following categories:

   Traditional Art

• Best of Show: $1,500
• 1^st  Place: $1,000
• 2^nd Place:    $750
• 3^rd Place:    $500

   Contemporary Art

• Best of Show: $1,500
• 1^st  Place: $1,000
• 2^nd Place:    $750
• 3^rd Place:    $500

The winning artists will attend the reception to meet the public and to talk about their art, some of which is for sale. The winners were chosen by David Boxley, an internationally recognized Northwest Coast Native artist who competed in two of the institute’s previous juried art competitions and was awarded best of show and two first place prizes.

SHI founded the competition in 2002 to promote the development of Southeast Alaska Native arts.  The goals of the Juried Art Show are:

-To encourage and enhance the creation and production of Southeast Alaska Native objects of artistic value which have fallen into disuse and are becoming rare.

-To stimulate and enhance the quality of artistic work among our Native artisans.

-To encourage the development of new forms of art of purely Southeast Alaska Native form and design. 

To ensure an objective judging process, the names of the artists were not included with the photos of objects viewed during selection.

Sealaska Heritage Institute is a Native nonprofit founded by Sealaska Corp. in 1980 to administer the corporation’s cultural programs. The mission of the Institute is to perpetuate and enhance Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian cultures.

CONTACT:  Rosita Worl, SHI president, 463-4844