University of Alaska Museum, University of Alaska, Fairbanks
Circumpolar Art and Identity
As circumpolar cultures respond to the contemporary trend toward globalization, they increasingly need symbols that will establish their distinctiveness at the national and international levels. Many indigenous peoples of the North are re-examining their historical and pre-contact heritages in a quest for such distinguishing symbols. This panel invites case studies illustrating this point across the circumpolar North and also those exploring theoretical approaches to the analysis of art as political symbol.