Kotzebue artist Holly Nordlum has a portfolio as diverse and colorful as the Arctic itself.
And recently, the Anchorage-based artist and graphic designer took on her biggest, and potentially most-gratifying project yet.
Nordlum was awarded the opportunity to be part of the Artist Leadership Program through the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of the American Indian. The project will see Nordlum travel to Washington, D.C. to gather ideas and methods that she will bring back to Anchorage to share with youth selected to implement those ideas through art.
Working with the Anchorage School District and the Alaska Native Heritage Center, Nordlum is hoping the results of this project will be more than beautiful pieces to look at.
"I guess when you're at that age you're floundering a little, looking for who you are," Nordlum said. "Native art connects to culture, history and family."
Nordlum grew up in Kotzebue taking art classes and was always inspired by her mother, who is also an artist, she said. She grew up staying at a remote camp, traveling by dog team and spending lots of time with her grandmother.
A self-proclaimed print maker, Nordlum said it is her Arctic life that she draws from for inspiration.
"Even now, I'm Native and I live in the city and that inspires a lot of my work now -- just the things we go through every day."
Nordlum studied fine art at the University of Alaska Anchorage and now has a design business in Anchorage. She creates with a variety of media and works with different Native youth programs in the city. She hopes to help young Native artists find their path through designing and implementing art, however that might be.
"Something like this helps connect them to something bigger, so they don't feel alone," Nordlum said.
Selected as one of five, out of hundreds of applicants nationwide, Nordlum is looking forward to taking on this latest large project.
The program's primary objectives are for individual indigenous artists to focus on artistic processes while researching the vast collections of the Smithsonian Institution, according to the program's website. While in Washington, Nordlum will have a chance to meet and consult with staff at the Smithsonian and other arts organizations and participate in a public art panel discussion.
The second goal of the program is for artists to return home with new insight and information to mentor young artists. The final product will be on display in Anchorage, though Nordlum isn't sure yet what the project will be or where it will be displayed. It will be created by youth in elementary and high school after several sessions between Nordlum and the students, before and after her trip to the nation's capital.
The project will hopefully give the students a bigger sense of self, some inspiration and a venture they can be proud of.
"This is just one project," Nordlum said. "There are so many out there but if I can reach one or two students, I think that can make a difference."
The effort is still in its fledgling stages, though the $16,000 award has been secured.
"This is a great opportunity, not just for me, but for the Heritage Center and the municipality's public art program to get connected with the Smithsonian."
The final product will depend on the students, their interests, and what they feel would best represent them, though the end display will focus on Alaska Native culture and inspiration.
Nordlum will research historical tools, landscapes and families while in D.C. all relating to indigenous life.
The younger artists involved in the endeavor will focus on the evolution of tools and technology as it pertains to their culture, while the high schoolers will home in on textures, a broad theme open to interpretation by the students.
Nordlum is looking forward to gathering information, photographs and perhaps even new techniques while down south, she said.
Filmmaker Tom Trainer will document the process for others around the state to enjoy.
This story first appeared in The Arctic Sounder and is republished here with permission.