Nicholas Galanin facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Nicholas Galanin
Nicholas Galanin in May 2011
Background information
Native name	Yéil Ya-Tseen
Also known as	Silver Jackson
Born	1979 (age 45–46) Sitka, Alaska
Origin	Sitka, Alaska
Genres	Electronic
Years active	2006-present
Labels	Home Skillet Records Unbound Records of the Anchorage Museum
Associated acts	Indian Agent Otis Calvin III Zak Dylan Wass OCnotes

Nicholas Galanin is a talented artist and musician from Sitka, Alaska. He is part of the Sitka Tribe of Alaska, with Tlingit and Unangax̂ heritage. His art often talks about how Native and non-Native cultures interact and change.

Early Life and Education

Nicholas Galanin was born in Sitka, Alaska, in 1979. When he was young, he learned how to make jewelry from his father and uncle. His grandfather, George Benson, was also a famous carver.

At 18, Nicholas worked a desk job. One day, he was drawing Tlingit art, but was told he could only read history books. So, he decided to quit and become a full-time artist. He says this was his last job that wasn't creative.

He later studied silversmithing in London, England, and earned a degree in 2003. In 2007, he got another degree in indigenous visual arts in New Zealand. He also learned from master carvers and jewelers.

Nicholas Galanin's Artworks

Nicholas Galanin creates many different kinds of art. His work often makes people think about history, culture, and how different groups of people see the world.

Early Exhibitions

His first art show, called Totems to Turquoise, happened in 2004 at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City.

In 2006, he made a series of book sculptures called What Have We Become?. He used blank pages and pages from old books about people from the 1800s. He carved, cut, and laser-engraved these pages.

Tsu Heidei Shugaxtutaan

In 2008, Galanin's video art piece, Tsu Heidei Shugaxtutaan, was shown at The Power Plant Contemporary Art Gallery. This artwork combines traditional Tlingit dance and hip hop.

One part of the video shows a dancer doing "popping" moves to a traditional Tlingit song. The other part shows a dancer in traditional Tlingit clothing dancing to electronic music. The title, Tsu Heidei Shugaxtutaan, means "We Will Again Open This Container of Wisdom That Has Been Left in Our Care." This work was also shown at the Peabody Essex Museum in 2012.

S’igeika’awu: Ghost

In 2009, Galanin's piece S’igeika’awu: Ghost was shown at the Anchorage Museum. This artwork looks like a mix of a Native mask and a piece of Delftware (a type of pottery). It makes people think about a time when Native masks were not valued, but fine porcelain was very expensive.

Things are Looking Native, Native’s Looking Whiter

One of Galanin's most famous works is Things are Looking Native, Native’s Looking Whiter. It was a main piece in an exhibit at the Nevada Museum of Art. This artwork is a photo that combines two images.

On the left is a 1906 photo of a Hopi-Tewa girl with a traditional hairstyle. On the right is Carrie Fisher as Princess Leia from the 1977 movie Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, with her famous "cinnamon roll" hairstyle. Galanin created this work to comment on cultural appropriation in popular media, especially how Native cultures are sometimes used without permission or understanding.

He explained that the photographer, Edward S. Curtis, who took many pictures of Indigenous people, sometimes "stereotyped and romanticized" them. Galanin believes that taking parts of a culture without understanding its meaning is like "thievery." He wants people to understand that Indigenous cultures are not stuck in the past but are always changing.

Artworks from 2013 to 2017

In 2013, Galanin's art was shown at the Alaska State Museum. In 2015, he designed a logo for Tribal Sports, a brand for Alaskan school sports.

His work You Are on Indisneyian Land was shown in 2016 at an exhibition called "Race and Revolution." That same year, Kill the Indian, Save the Man was displayed at the Anchorage Museum. In 2017, his art was part of the Native American Pavilion at the Venice Biennale. He also led the carving of a totem pole that was put up in Savikko Park on Douglas Island.

Dear Listener: Works by Nicholas Galanin

A large exhibition of Galanin's art, called "Dear Listener: Works by Nicholas Galanin," was held at the Heard Museum in Phoenix, Arizona, in 2018. It was the biggest contemporary art show at the Heard Museum in over ten years, featuring more than fifty of his works from 15 years.

Some of the pieces included:

• A Supple Plunder: This work, made with his brother Jerrod Galanin, uses nine body forms made of ballistic gel. It remembers twelve Unangan men who were shot by Russian settlers.
• God Complex: This is a "crucifix" made from porcelain police riot gear. It comments on the roles of police and religion in cultural control.
• The American Dream is Alie and Well: This piece shows an American flag shaped like a bear hide, with bullets for claws and gold teeth. It compares Native and non-Native ideas of the American dream.
• Indian Children's Bracelet: This is a set of child-sized handcuffs with engravings. It represents Indigenous children who were forced into American boarding schools, where they were made to give up their culture. This piece is one of three pairs that will never be shown together, symbolizing how Indigenous families were broken apart.

Galanin's silver jewelry, some of which was worn by singer Erykah Badu, was also on display.

Artworks in 2019

In 2019, Galanin's The Value of Sharpness: When It Falls was shown at the Open Source Gallery in New York. His work We Dreamt Deaf was displayed at Macalester College. This piece features a polar bear that is not fully stuffed in the back, looking like it's melting. It criticizes hunting for sport and shows how climate change harms animals. His work was also shown at the Honolulu Biennial in 2019.

Carry a Song / Disrupt an Anthem

In 2018, Galanin had a solo show called Carry a Song / Disrupt an Anthem at the Peter Blum Gallery. This show explored how American culture sometimes tries to change or hide Indigenous identity. Works like White Noise, American Prayer Rug and The Imaginary Indian (Totem Pole) commented on how American culture can be distracting and how Indigenous people are pressured to fit in.

Other works, like Architecture of return, escape and Land Swipe, looked at how Indigenous cultural items were taken from their communities and put into museums.

Shadow on the land, an excavation and bush burial

In 2020, Galanin presented Shadow on the land, an excavation and bush burial at the Biennale of Sydney in Australia. This artwork was a grave dug in the shape of Captain James Cook's shadow in Hyde Park, Sydney.

Galanin explained that digging this hole suggests burying the statue of Captain Cook. It also represents burying harmful ways of treating Indigenous land, people, and knowledge. He believes that statues of colonial figures, like Captain Cook, represent harmful ideas and should be removed. He also thinks that removing statues is just a first step, and it should be followed by economic fairness for Indigenous communities.

Galanin was involved in the removal of a statue of Alexander Baranov in Anchorage, Alaska. He stated that Baranov was responsible for terrible acts against Indigenous people.

Music Career

Nicholas Galanin also makes music under the name Silver Jackson. He is part of a music group called The Black Constellation.

He started his own record label and a music festival called Home Skillet Festival. He released his first music collection, Moves Like Music, in 2007. His first album, Silver Jackson, came out in 2008, followed by Thought I Found Gold in 2009. He released more albums, including It's Glimmering Now (2012) and Starry Skies Open Eyes (2014).

Silver Jackson's music was featured on an Indigenous Futurism Mixtape. He also created music for the documentary Lineage: Tlingit Art Across Generations.

In 2017, Galanin formed a band called Indian Agent with Otis Calvin III and Zak Dylan Wass. They released their first album, Meditations in The Key of Red, in 2017.

Activism and Advocacy

Galanin often speaks about issues like colonialism (when one country takes control of another) and environmentalism (protecting nature).

In 2019, Galanin was chosen as one of 75 artists to show his work at the Whitney Museum of American Art Biennial. Being selected for this show is a big honor for an American artist.

However, on July 19, 2019, Galanin and three other artists asked to remove their work from the exhibition. They were protesting against Warren Kanders, who was a vice chair on the Whitney Board of Trustees. Kanders owned a company that made tear gas. More artists joined the protest. Kanders later resigned, and the artists decided to let their work be shown.

Galanin explained his decision: "For me, the reason for both decisions was to fight erasure." He meant that he wanted to make sure Indigenous voices were heard, even in places like museums that haven't always been safe for Indigenous culture. He believes it's more important to be part of the conversation than to avoid it.

Personal Life

Nicholas Galanin has three children.

Notable Public Collections

Nicholas Galanin's artwork is held in many important museums and collections around the world, including:

• Alaska State Museum, Juneau, Alaska
• Anchorage Museum at the Rasmuson Center, Alaska
• Art Institute of Chicago, Illinois
• Crystal Bridges Museum, Arkansas
• Denver Art Museum, Colorado
• George Gustav Heye Center, New York
• Hood Museum of Art, New Hampshire
• Humboldt Forum, Berlin, Germany
• Los Angeles County Museum of Art, California
• Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Texas
• Museum of Modern Art, New York
• National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, Canada
• Nevada Museum of Art, Nevada
• North American Native Museum, Zurich, Switzerland
• Peabody Essex Museum, Massachusetts
• Portland Art Museum, Oregon
• Princeton University Art Museum, New Jersey
• Vancouver Art Gallery, British Columbia, Canada

Awards and Fellowships

Nicholas Galanin has received many awards and fellowships for his art, including:

• 2008 Best Experimental Film, ImagineNATIVE Film and Media Arts Festival
• 2012 United States Artists Fellowship
• 2013 Eiteljorg Contemporary Art Fellowship
• 2014 Rasmuson Foundation Fellow
• 2018 Rockefeller Foundation Bellagio Center Fellow
• 2020 Gwendolyn Knight Lawrence award, The American Academy of Arts and Letters
• 2020 Open Society Foundation Soros Arts Fellowship
• 2023 Joan Mitchell Fellowship
• 2024 Guggenheim Fellowship in Fine Arts

Images for kids

See also

• Tlingit
• Unangax̂
• Anchorage Museum
• Indigenous music of North America
• List of people from Alaska