Watercolor Workshop, April 15, 6 – 8 pm @Bunnell

Animal Self-Portraits – Based on the Inupiaq myth “The Man Who was a Caribou” included in the book Alaskan Igloo Tales, attendees draw/paint pictures of themselves incorporated into mythic and animal imagery. “Where Christian beliefs identify with nature as completely other, traditional Indigenous peoples see no separation between man and nature/animals. Inspired by this story—a hero’s journey set in the Alaskan Arctic— attendees paint/draw pictures of themselves as animals they might identify with.”

$20 discount/ $25 general / $30 pay it forward. The workshop accommodates a variety of ages and skill levels. Limit 12. Register: https://bunnell-street-arts-center.square.site/tickets-workshops

Biography:

Tamara is of Swedish and Inupiaq/Kawerak descent, with ancestry from Golovin and Nome, Alaska. Her inspiration as an artist stems from her spiritual and metaphysical practices, which began in her teens when she became an Evangelical Christian, a path she eventually concluded failed to deliver on its promised excision of inherited ancestral shame.

Her spiritual journey has evolved over the years through study and trial-and-error practices. However, encountering the power of myth in Joseph Campbell’s books and teachings marked the beginning of an enlightening process toward autonomy and, more importantly, healing the shame that had unconsciously driven her and her family. Campbell’s work, along with that of other spiritual teachers and cultural mythology, inspired her to create Indigenous-identifying and potentially shame-healing mythical imagery—her main goal as an artist.