Call Description

The Alaska Native Heritage Center (ANHC) invites artists to apply to develop, create, and install a public monument to honor the service and sacrifices of all Veterans with a special emphasis on Alaska Native and Native American Veterans. ANHC received a request for a monument to be built in honor of veterans after we raised a Healing Totem Pole dedicated to survivors and descendants of survivors of boarding schools in 2023. As part of the larger Ngiisdla Project (Haida, “to heal, recover, and get well again”), this monument is going to be installed in ANHC’s Traditional Healing Garden. This is the second of ten monuments to be installed in the space. The Ngiisdla Project advances goals of healing, implementing ceremonies, preserving cultures, and facilitating truth-telling about Alaska’s history. The monuments will represent traditions and arts of the five regional cultural groups of the Alaska Native community.

The monuments will be developed and installed over time. Spaces within the garden's layout are allocated for these monuments; their placement is designed to ensure the monuments are set apart from one another to allow them to tell their own story individually and be harmonious with each other as a group within the garden. Each monument is allocated approximately 50 square feet of space within an 8-foot diameter circle. The monuments will be approximately 25' apart, as measured from the center of each monument's allocated circle. While there will be flexibility in incorporating the directly adjacent area, the main elements of the monument should be located within the assigned area. The spaces in which the monuments will be installed are currently embodied in a circular design, but it is not the intent that monuments be circular in nature or design.

The gardens will include landforms and berming, landscape boulders, and plantings. Artist proposals should include all aspects that, when complete, will result in a finished product integrated within the garden. No monument should be taller than the existing 20-foot healing pole in honor of Boarding School Survivors.

A public monument to Veterans in the traditional healing garden at ANHC will need to represent all six branches of service, the Alaska Territorial Guard, and the contribution of women veterans in their design. Other themes suggested by our veteran’s committee include the importance of water as a cleansing and healing force; the close ties between language and culture and its ability to heal the heart and body; reference to Code Talkers and other Indigenous contributors to military strategies; Alaska Native and Native American universal values; and the symbol of a circle to signify safety and connection.

We are looking for an Indigenous artist(s) who is on a healthy path spiritually, who can come from a place of peace and calm to put good medicine into the public art. We encourage mentorship artist teams to apply.

The total budget for the artwork is $85,000, which needs to cover all costs associated with the project including design, fabrication, travel and accommodations, transportation, installation, photographic documentation, and documentation of your design for signage. There are funds available to support installation and materials for creation, however they are limited and will be allocated upon assessment of the needs of the artist proposals.

The artwork should be designed for longevity, durability, and safety. The location for the artwork is a public area that will not be actively supervised. The design should recognize that while the artwork may not be designed for interaction, people may interact with it undesirably. Artwork should be designed to be safe (no head or finger entrapments, no sharp edges, and similar).

Artwork should be designed for Anchorage's climate (including structural snow loads and minimizing the potential for snow to fall on adjacent viewers), with materials and techniques that will not require ongoing maintenance for aesthetics or longevity. Artwork should be designed to withstand minor vandalism, including the ability to remove typical graffiti (such as pen or paint) and withstand bending.

The Ngiisdla Project is made possible by generous funding supplied from the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Mellon Foundation.

Please view the Veteran's video for more information: https://youtu.be/PqIqaIu1i54

Application Requirements

1)      3-6 digital images of past work should be loaded into CaFE (callforentry.org) following the website’s guidelines.

2)      Each image should be identified with title, materials, dimensions, and value.

3)      Current 1–2-page resume, including 3 professional references.

4)      Your artist statement should include a description of why you are interested or qualified for this project. It should also include any experience or work samples in relation to your chosen medium.

5)      A brief conceptual proposal which identifies the medium and thematic relevance.

6)  Tribal Enrollment

Eligibility Criteria

Artists will be selected to develop proposals with the project team based on the following:

1)      Artistic merit from submitted work samples.

2)      Appropriateness of the artist’s medium, style, and previous experience in relation to the project goals and setting.

3)      Experience with projects of a similar scale and scope including familiarity working with community in your design process.

4)      Artists must have good communication skills and be willing to work with our Veteran’s committee and staff to produce the healing monument.

5)      Alaska Native or Native American artist preference.