Tlingit Haida Tsimshian Eyak Alaska State Museum ~ Juneau, Alaska
Right: Large Wall Side
Formline
The Fluidity of Formline
Formline is the fluid, curving & interconnected design of Southeast Alaska. Tlingit, Haida, Tsimshian.
Eyak art uses painted or carved formline on objects ranging in size from jewelry to totem poles. A sophisticated system evolved over hundreds or thousands of years, changing to incorporate new ideas, motifs, & materials. Formline has rules, but artists include their own innovations within the boundaries of traditional. Traditionally, formline art passed from master to student, but the apprentice tradition faded with the arrival of the American School system, wage work, & pressure from missionaries to abandon tradition. The art survives today thanks to artists who kept going in spite of the difficulties.
Tlingit Haida Tsimshian Eyak Alaska State Museum ~ Juneau, Alaska
Right: Large Wall Side
Formline
The Fluidity of Formline
Formline is the fluid, curving & interconnected design of Southeast Alaska. Tlingit, Haida, Tsimshian.
Eyak art uses painted or carved formline on objects ranging in size from jewelry to totem poles. A sophisticated system evolved over hundreds or thousands of years, changing to incorporate new ideas, motifs, & materials. Formline has rules, but artists include their own innovations within the boundaries of traditional. Traditionally, formline art passed from master to student, but the apprentice tradition faded with the arrival of the American School system, wage work, & pressure from missionaries to abandon tradition. The art survives today thanks to artists who kept going in spite of the difficulties.