The Rasmuson Foundation has named Kodiak-born carver Jerry Laktonen as its 2025 Distinguished Artist.
The foundation is Alaska's largest philanthropic organization, and the Distinguished Artist award is its highest honor for an artist, complete with a $50,000 grant.
Laktonen, originally from Larsen Bay, is self-taught and didn't even start carving seriously until the age of 45. That was after many years as a commercial fisherman, a career and livelihood disrupted by the Exxon-Valdez oil spill.
So, Laktonen says, making a living from carving, while also expressing himself and his Alutiiq culture, has been important.
This interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.
Jerry Laktonen: Well, I when I started out, I started making these small paddles, because I was trying to make something that would sell, because you have to make something that will sell, even if it is something you do artistically. And I was making these little paddles that would I just, I figured, they would be pretty attractive, but also they would fit in people's luggage if they're hauling, you know, things out of Kodiak or something like that.
Also smaller masks, mainly, but I was just mainly doing the paddles. This was right after the oil spill, and I think a lot of people were kind of struggling back then, trying to figure out how to make a living, because the price of salmon and the other fish products kind of went down, and so there was not a lot of money to be made, and you had to really work hard to be able to get ahead.
Casey Grove: How did you learn how to make that stuff?
JL: Well, I didn't have anybody to teach me. In fact, I never have had any kind of instruction of any kind, but I just went from pictures of old paddles or masks from catalogs, from collections all over the world, whether they were in England or France or Russia or different places.
CG: For you and trying to learn how to do this art, was there a gap there for you, like growing up, that that you had to kind of learn it on your own?
JL: Yes, absolutely. I've seen pictures of the beach in Karluk, and I believe it was like 1911 even, the beaches were just like covered with kayaks on the beach at high tide. And my dad was born in 1920 or something like that. And by then, he said he never saw any kayaks, so they just disappeared right away, probably because of the modern fishing boats.
CG: I guess it wasn't a paddle, I don't think, right, but there was a piece of art that was like Joe Hazelwood, the captain of the Exxon-Valdez. I wondered if you could tell me about that. Why did you make that piece?
JL: That's kind of the fun thing about what I was doing, because you kind of have to try and use your imagination and maybe have some fun with it. And one thing about Alutiiq people, and you know, I grew up in Kodiak, Larsen Bay, is that people have a little bit of an odd sense of humor.
And so when I was working on this mask, it was actually, it was actually Alutiiq, but it was more true Chugach from Prince William Sound. And their masks are, a certain portion of them, are nonsymmetrical. And this one was definitely not symmetrical and came out looking like it had a really long forehead. And I was looking at it, and I looked kind of like Joe Hazelwood's head. And this was right after the oil spill, so it was kind of on my mind and everybody else's mind, I think, so it automatically became the Joe Hazelwood mask. And it worked.
CG: You alluded to the impact on fishing from the Exxon-Valdez oil spill, and you had been a fisherman in the past, right?
JL: Well, yeah, I've been a fisherman ever since I was born, or even before I was born, because my mom was out fishing when she was, you know, pregnant with all of us, really. My whole life was fishing up until, well actually, until I started doing artwork when I was 45, which is pretty long time. And, I don't know, it was my life, and then all of a sudden I had to find something else. And it was kind of a tough change, real fast like that, but it was pretty also very interesting and fun, too.
CG: The 2025 Rasmuson Distinguished Artist Award, what does that mean to you? I mean, what do you hope that conveys to other people that their attention now is on your work?
JL: Well, maybe it'll inspire other people to start doing what I did. I don't know. And it's out there, and I don't think a lot of people have started to do it, I mean, not bigger time artwork, you know, like fine arts.
I'm so lucky that I've had a lot of good positive reinforcement as far as people liking my work. But also, a lot of times my family are really supportive that way. And I can't hardly believe it. I think they're just saying it just to be nice or something.
CG: It helps either way, right?
JK: Yeah, it does. It does. But then after a while, you start realizing it is pretty good. As a matter of fact, when I go through my photo in my cell phone, I have like thousands and thousands of pictures of stuff that are so beautiful I can't believe I did it.
