Jackson Polys (born 1976 in

Ketchikan, Alaska Ketchikan ( ; ) is a city in and the borough seat of the Ketchikan Gateway Borough on Revillagigedo Island of Alaska. It is the state's southeasternmost major settlement. Downtown Ketchikan is a National Historic Landmark District. With a p ...

) is a

Tlingit The Tlingit or Lingít ( ) are Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast of North America. , they constitute two of the 231 federally recognized List of Alaska Native tribal entities, Tribes of Alaska. Most Tlingit are Alaska Natives; ...

Native visual artist and filmmaker whose work is based between

Alaska Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the north ...

and

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

. His work examines the constraints and potential in the desire for Indigenous advancement, while challenging existing gazes onto traditional Native culture. Polys is well known for his

films A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of Visual arts, visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are gen ...

, institutional critique, and carved sculptures incorporating materials such as abalone, glass, liquids, resins, silicone, as well as the ready-made.

Early life and education

Polys was born in the

territory located in the Pacific Northwest of the United States near the border of British Canada. At the early age of three, Polys began carving with his father Nathan Jackson (artist). He was adopted into the Dakl’aweidí Clan of the Jilkáat Kwáan and worked as a visual artist with the names of Stephen Paul Jackson and Stron Softi. During this time Polys began to carve large-scale totemic sculptures. Polys received his BA in Art History and Visual Arts from

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

(2013), and holds an MFA in Visual Arts from

(2015). He is the recipient of a 2017 Native Arts and Culture Foundation (NACF) Mentor Artist Fellowship, and Advisor to Indigenous New York.

Art

Jackson Polys' artistic practice explores the history, historiography, and contemporary experience of native peoples. Polys practices wood carving from his traditional training with his father Nathan Jackson (artist), integrating research into traditional native-American carving techniques. In "Manifest X," a collaboration with Robert Mills, the two artists created sculptures that Tlingit visual traditions while revealing the expansive potential for self expression through these forms. This project, among others, seeks to correct the treatment of native artifacts and objects by institutions such as museums. Jackson Polys taught at Columbia from 2016 to 2017, and was an advisor to Indigenous New York with the

Vera List Center for Art and Politics The Vera List Center for Art and Politics is an American nonprofit research organization and public forum for art, culture, and politics, established in 1992. Vera List was an American art collector and philanthropist. The Vera List Center awa ...

. Polys received a 2017 Native Arts and Cultures Foundation Mentor Artist Fellowship. He is currently collaborating with the Whitney Museum of American Art to establish a land acknowledgement principle. In 2022, Sealaska Heritage Institute invited carvers to create kootéeyaa (totem poles) for the Totem Pole Trail in

Juneau, Alaska Juneau ( ; ), officially the City and Borough of Juneau, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital of the U.S. state of Alaska, located along the Gastineau Channel and the Southeast Alaska, Alaskan panhandle. Juneau was named the ...

. Polys and his father, Nathan Jackson, will carve two poles. Polys has also worked under the names Stephen Paul Jackson and Stron Softi.

Selected exhibitions, performances, and screenings

* Whitney Biennial, Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, NY, 2019. *''The Crybabies,'' Alaska State Museum, Juneau, AK, 2019. *''Native Perspectives,'' Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY, 2018. * Sealaska Heritage Institute, Juneau, AK, 2018. *''Unholding,'' Artists Space, New York, NY, 2018. *''The Violence of a Civilization Without Secrets,''

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with 423,234 combined in-person and online viewership in 2023. The festival has acted ...

, 2018. *''Manifest X'', Main Street Gallery, Ketchikan, AK, 2018. *''The New Order,'' Whitney Museum of American Art, 2018. *''My First 3D Part III: The Final Chapter'', Microscope Gallery, New York, NY, 2017.

References

External links

Jackson Polys Bio - MIT Program in Art, Culture, and Technology

Jackson Polys Bio - Native Arts & Cultures Foundation
{{DEFAULTSORT:Polys, Jackson 1976 births Living people 21st-century Alaska Native people 21st-century Native American artists American contemporary artists Artists from Alaska Columbia University School of the Arts alumni People from Ketchikan, Alaska Tlingit male artists Tlingit artists