Abstracts
Abstract
As a general rule, so-called tourist arts are thought of as greatly simplified and less closely tied to the indigenous cultures that make “traditional” art forms. In this article, I argue that the Yup’ik Eskimo coiled basket (mingqaaq), an art form developed specifically for sale to outsiders, is in fact closely connected to modern Yup’ik culture through its use of raw materials (beach, or rye grass and sea-mammal intestine). Its recent appearance around Alaska in various media—on a telephone book cover, in a logo for a Native Corporation, and as a stage prop on the podium beside a Native leader arguing the subsistence cause, to name a few—suggests that the mingqaaq, the most widely sold Yup’ik art form today, may have taken on the role of political symbol for the highly contentious issue of Alaska Native subsistence rights.
Résumé
Il est courant de penser que les arts dits touristiques sont considérablement simplifiés et moins étroitement liés aux cultures autochtones qui les ont produits que les formes d’art «traditionnel». Dans cet article, je soutiens que le panier en colombin (mingqaaq) des Yupiit, une forme d’art qui s’est développée pour être spécifiquement vendue aux étrangers, est en fait étroitement lié à la culture yup’ik d’aujourd’hui par le biais de l’usage de certaines matières premières (joncs de plage ou de seigle et boyaux de mammifère marin). Son apparition récente sur divers supports médiatiques à travers l’Alaska—sur la couverture du bottin téléphonique, comme logo d’une société autochtone, comme accessoire de podium à côté d’un leader autochtone défendant la cause des activités de subsistance pour n’en nommer que certains—suggère que le mingqaaq, la forme d’art yup’ik la plus largement vendue aujourd’hui, a peut-être embrassé le rôle de symbole politique dans le débat très controversé du droit à la subsistance des Autochtones d’Alaska.
Appendices
References
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