Teri Rofkar, or Chas' Koowu Tla'a (1956–2016), was a

Tlingit The Tlingit ( or ; also spelled Tlinkit) are indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast of North America. Their language is the Tlingit language (natively , pronounced ),

Sitka, Alaska russian: Ситка , native_name_lang = tli , settlement_type = Consolidated city-borough , image_skyline = File:Sitka 84 Elev 135.jpg , image_caption = Downtown Sitka in 1984 , image_size ...

. She specialized in Ravenstail (Raven's Tail) designs and spruce root baskets. Rofkar was born on September 27, 1956 in

San Rafael, California San Rafael ( ; Spanish language, Spanish for "Raphael (archangel), St. Raphael", ) is a city and the county seat of Marin County, California, Marin County, California, United States. The city is located in the North Bay (San Francisco Bay Area), ...

and grew up in

Pelican Pelicans (genus ''Pelecanus'') are a genus of large water birds that make up the family Pelecanidae. They are characterized by a long beak and a large throat pouch used for catching prey and draining water from the scooped-up contents before s ...

and

Anchorage, Alaska Anchorage () is the largest city in the U.S. state of Alaska by population. With a population of 291,247 in 2020, it contains nearly 40% of the state's population. The Anchorage metropolitan area, which includes Anchorage and the neighboring Ma ...

. In 1976 she moved to

, the town her grandmother was born in, raising three children with her husband Denny Rofkar. She died on December 2, 2016, at age 60. Rofkar learned weaving from her grandmother Eliza Monk, as well as

Delores Churchill Delores E. Churchill ( hai, Ilskyaalas) is a Native American artist of Haida descent. She is a weaver of baskets, hats, robes, and other regalia, as well as leading revitalization efforts for Haida, her native language. Background Churchil ...

(Haida), Ernestine Hanlon-Abel (Tlingit) and Cheryl Samuel. She began her professional career as a weaver in 1986. She wove the first Tlingit robe made completely from mountain goat wool in more than two hundred years, but also worked with contemporary materials and technology.

Methods of weaving

Rofkar specialized in twinning, a method of weaving, and a 6,000 year old practice. This method employed freehand looming, a long, continuous process that involves creating baskets and ceremonial robes from the roots of spruce trees.

Activist life

Aside from her artwork, Rofkar was a community educator and researcher through her work as an artist and weaver. Throughout her life she cultivated awareness surrounding traditional Native American crafts by expanding the discourse surrounding them to include new stories and perspectives. Through this, Rokfar connected the histories of native people to the broader global community.

Collections on display

Rofkar's works can be seen on display at the

National Museum of the American Indian The National Museum of the American Indian is a museum in the United States devoted to the culture of the indigenous peoples of the Americas. It is part of the Smithsonian Institution group of museums and research centers. The museum has three ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

and the Museum of the North in

Fairbanks, Alaska Fairbanks is a home rule city and the borough seat of the Fairbanks North Star Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska. Fairbanks is the largest city in the Interior region of Alaska and the second largest in the state. The 2020 Census put the po ...

Awards and honors

* In 2004, Rofkar won the Governor's Award for Native Art in Alaska. * In 2006, she was selected for a USA Fellowship from

United States Artists United States Artists (USA) is a national arts funding organization based in Chicago. USA is dedicated to supporting living artists and cultural practitioners across the United States by granting unrestricted awards. Mission The organization' ...

in the Crafts and Traditional Arts category. * She was a recipient of a 2009

National Heritage Fellowship The National Heritage Fellowship is a lifetime honor presented to master folk and traditional artists by the National Endowment for the Arts. Similar to Japan's Living National Treasure award, the Fellowship is the United States government's h ...

awarded by the

National Endowment for the Arts The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal ...

, which is the United States government's highest honor in the folk and traditional arts. * In 2012, she received the

Creative Capital Creative Capital is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization based in New York City that supports artists across the United States through funding, counsel, gatherings, and career development services. Since its founding in 1999, Creative Capital has commi ...

Visual Arts Award. * In 2013, she received both the Distinguished Artist Award from the Rasmuson Foundation and a Native Arts & Cultures Foundation Artist Fellowship. * In 2004, Rofkar received an Ecotrust Indigenous Leadership Award.

References

External links

*
Teri Rofkar, Rasmuson Foundation Distinguished Artist 2013
(video) {{DEFAULTSORT:Rofkar, Teri 1956 births 2016 deaths 20th-century Native Americans 21st-century Native Americans American weavers Artists from Alaska National Heritage Fellowship winners Native American basket weavers Native American textile artists Northwest Coast art Tlingit people People from Sitka, Alaska Women basketweavers Women textile artists 20th-century Native American women 21st-century Native American women Textile artists from Alaska Textile artists from California