Alaskraft Fine Art Studio

Alaskraft Fine Art Studio Alaska Native artist, life-schooled in magical realism. Primary focus in bas-relief and illumination

12/22/2023

ISO: Used photography equipment. Tripods, lights, soft boxes, retractable backdrops, PM me if you know of any please.😊 Being an artist is demanding, you also have to be a writer, photographer, web presence and marketing specialist, and so much more to even be seen.

Studio minute:Body: BecomingPiece: LoneWIP: 214hrsI am becoming more and more enamored of this work. As if my hands move...
12/15/2023

Studio minute:

Body: Becoming
Piece: Lone
WIP: 214hrs

I am becoming more and more enamored of this work. As if my hands move on their own. As if all that is inside me cried out in a single breath. An exhalation of all of my desire to create art.
Not a final breath, not frenzied, but surrender all the same. No, this is a slow, metered breath that is singing the hills and valleys, the secret places of my mind into being. I often stare in awe, because these are the things known, but also hidden to me. As if my hand is speaking a language that my tongue refuses to utter for reverence, in penitence. My tongue, though it clings to gentleness, love, truth, has uttered ill, spelled pain.

But never my hands.

They are the only ones allowed to spell my secret places, to write their truths. And I, I watch in wonder and amazement as they become more fluent with each stroke. My nose so close in the doing, that it isn't until I step back that I can grasp the things they've willed into being.

They've reworked the left panel from scratches to lines, from graphite to ink. Now they've begun the slow process of reaching inside the wood to free the thing birthed there by my mind. Patting tummies, massaging small frail limbs, holding close until at last they take their first long breath.

As always, I hope that you are well. Please know that you are loved beyond measure. You are meant to be here. 🥰We need you. Your smile lights a candle in so many hearts. I know that the holidays can be rough. I know how it feels scrolling through the endless posts about family, and feeling nothing but loss, emptiness. Please stay. Because, beyond those feelings, the ones lieing to you, is the truth that you belong here and deserve to be loved.. I love you dearly.❤

12/14/2023

☺If you enjoy my art, and would like to support its creation I'd like to invite you to join me on Patreon at:

https://www.patreon.com/AlaskraftFineArtsStudio

I look forward to seeing you there! Your support means the world to me. Together we can create such beauty! Let's grow together. 😊❤

Studio minute:Body: BecomingPiece: Lone (working title)WIP I've found myself thinking about connectedness, what it means...
12/13/2023

Studio minute:

Body: Becoming
Piece: Lone (working title)
WIP

I've found myself thinking about connectedness, what it means to exist as only an image on your screen right now. What that sort of superficial existence means. It feels like perhaps I am a human that walks alone in a world of angelic beings. I only see the best of you here. Perfect lighting, chin up, looking past the camera as if in thought. Like angels staring at their phones, unaware of their own magic. I wonder if it feels like that for you too. I honestly hope that it doesn't. I hope that for you life is the same lovely, squishy, snotty thing. Maybe it is, maybe it isn't.

Regardless, wherever you are I hope that you are warm and safe, truly connected with others, able to share your truth.

Studio minute:Body : BecomingWIP: unnamed 143hrsIt feels like I am closing in on a comfortable stopping point with this ...
12/03/2023

Studio minute:

Body : Becoming
WIP: unnamed 143hrs

It feels like I am closing in on a comfortable stopping point with this piece. It was my first after my injury in 19. I can't even begin to say how happy I've been to work on it, like being given a second second chance.😅 But honestly, it has taught me a lot. I have a feeling this is my last post before oiling it and hanging it on the wall to collect dust. It's been a fun process, thanks for hanging in there with me. This piece will likely become a triptych as well.

As always, I hope that you are well fed, snuggled into comfort, whatever it might be, and just generally content.😊❤

Studio minute:Body: BecomingWIP: First Mother, 129hrsIt's a slow process from my wheelchair, but feels worth it to take ...
12/02/2023

Studio minute:

Body: Becoming
WIP: First Mother, 129hrs

It's a slow process from my wheelchair, but feels worth it to take my time. Today I settled on the addition of 2 more panels for this piece making it a triptych. Not sure where in the world it will hang or whose alter it will grace, but it feels right. I feel like I need the others for balance, symmetry, and most importantly narrative context. Still much to be done but I am feeling the image solidify.

Rant:

Someone recently made a mean spirited comment about who it appears I am carving.

Kick rocks.

I am carving the me that I see when I look inside, only me. I don't carve other's likenesses without written enthusiastic consent, and even then I have reservations. Though there may still be discrepancies in its visage, that is only the fault of my limited skill set. I carve and draw using a mirror, or my camera, I can't afford models.

Another question about why I bother if I don't have a buyer or a show.

Simple answer? Because ART! That's why meanie!

I'm not doing this to make money, I am doing this to make art. To challenge myself to be honest and pay attention to the details. This is a lifelong study and in my eyes I still lack many of the refinements and qualities that I feel my work needs in order to be something that the art world wants. Most would never pay what it is worth, and even fewer will like it enough to.

Shows?

Well, most venues in Alaska appreciate other artists who consistently crank out quality work. I don't so there's that, I'm disabled. Most galleries have a core group of artists they handle, and a submission policy (if they have one at all) that isn't accessible if you are differently-abled. Compensation is never what it should be. Most artists have to have a second or third income in order to create. Speaking of which, I recently witnessed a buyer trying to bully a very accomplished but timid art friend into accepting less than a living wage in exchange for a piece that they poured their heart into and spent weeks on.

Please knock it off.

No, art isn't priced by the amount of time put into a piece, but the price does reflect the value of the countless hours put into mastering your technique.

For me, this is a study. A personal exploration of the same subject from different angles, different settings. It's an exercise I've undertaken in order to grow as an artist.

In the end yes, standing my ground may be financially futile but so what! You can bully me all you want on the price but I will gladly hang it on the wall at home and know that I've not only learned new skills while honing others, I've accomplished something I am proud of. That's enough. ☺

End rant.

As always, I hope that you are well. If you know of a particular venue that would like my work, please PM me. ❤

Studio minute:Body: BecomingWIP: First Mother, 123 hoursToday I settled on a working title, it feels like it fits. So mu...
12/01/2023

Studio minute:

Body: Becoming
WIP: First Mother, 123 hours

Today I settled on a working title, it feels like it fits. So much work left to do but, I am immensely enjoying everything that this piece is teaching me. I've begun to explore the textures and values that each stroke makes and found myself balking at the idea of simplicity for my own sake. What is art if we don't explore, don't push our own boundaries?

I was once told to stop working on an area that no one else would see. When I asked why, the answer was "No one's nose will ever be as close to it as yours is."

Pppppbbbbbtttt!!!

Masterpieces have been scrutinized from every angle, in every possible light, and from every distance. They are scrutinized as much for what the artist did as what they didn't do.

I want to create something that people want to stick their noses in. Maybe it won't make them ask big questions. I don't know. What I do know is that I am slowly falling in love with this piece, and that the further I go the more fragile it becomes, the more I have to focus and ask myself critical questions about my skill and where I can grow. About what it means to create, carefully, with intent and presence.

As always, I hope that you are well. I know that time and distance may separate us, but we watch the same stars. ❤

Studio minute:Today I struggled emotionally with news about my longevity. It is what it is I guess. My Grandmother once ...
11/30/2023

Studio minute:

Today I struggled emotionally with news about my longevity. It is what it is I guess. My Grandmother once told me as she was struggling with the same or similar emotions, "I've never met anyone who made it out of here alive." It made me think about the lilac she was laid beneath to rest, we have a cutting from her that now grows in our front yard. Grandfather is the rhubarb that maintains watch.

They return each season, her for perfume, him for pies. I, I would like to be an apple tree. Drink the rain, feel the wind in my leaves, stretch my toes in the dirt. One day. Not today, but one day. Who knows, maybe an artist will hew me into boards and reveal my ancestors faces again.

You never know.

Wherever you are I hope that you are warm and loved. ❤

It's hard to tell how big this piece is without the hubby for scale. 6' x 1' She is really coming together now. Lots of ...
11/18/2023

It's hard to tell how big this piece is without the hubby for scale. 6' x 1' She is really coming together now. Lots of work left to do but I am thrilled with the progress. Wherever you are, I wish you well. I hope your day is filled with joy.❤

I am slowly making progress though, there is more work to be done. It feels surreal watching my hands slowly reveal some...
11/15/2023

I am slowly making progress though, there is more work to be done. It feels surreal watching my hands slowly reveal something so exciting hidden inside this board. This was one that called to me when we were picking out material. I had no idea what it was hiding, but each stroke of my blade brings greater and greater excitement, greater clarity. Today there were quite a few learning moments that I hope to apply moving forward. Who knows what tomorrow holds. As always I hope that you are well.

Made progress today, she is slowly taking form.
11/15/2023

Made progress today, she is slowly taking form.

Each day brings another change. Today I started the body of the piece, I find it challenging but so very engaging. It gi...
11/13/2023

Each day brings another change. Today I started the body of the piece, I find it challenging but so very engaging. It gives me pause. I've given up on the toxic thoughts about monetization, I don't want it to corrupt this process. I've given up on fears about whether others will like it or find it engaging. I want only to be, to do, to reach down deep and grab hold of my power, stand in it. This work is by no means done, it is slowly emerging into new life. Much like me, and that gives me hope. Wherever you are I wish you well. ❤

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Anchorage, AK

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