MEET THE ARTIST
NICHOLAS GALANIN
10 MINUTES INTERVIEW
Nicholas Galanin (b. 1979 in Sitka, Alaska) is a Tlingit and Unangax multi-disciplinary artist and musician. His work often explores a dialogue of change and identity between Native and non-Native communities.
We met Nicholas in New York on October 18th - Alaska Day - a legal holiday in the U.S. state of Alaska, anniversary of the formal transfer of territories in present-day Alaska from the Russian Empire to the United States, which occurred on October 18th, 1867.
We met Nicholas in New York on October 18th - Alaska Day - a legal holiday in the U.S. state of Alaska, anniversary of the formal transfer of territories in present-day Alaska from the Russian Empire to the United States, which occurred on October 18th, 1867.
As an Indigenous person, Nicholas Galanin keep on meaning with a material used to divide in his public art installation “In every language there is Land / En cada lengua hay una Tierra.” The 30-foot work references Robert Indiana’s famous “LOVE” sculpture, echoing the text-based form to spell out “LAND.”
Whether it's The U.S. or the specific place, history and story of borders and movement migration. You know the history here. A lot of people ended in this region in different ways. So here the importance to bring the border wall. Material and scale to a place like this to carry the conversation.
It’s important to recognize that one of the first walls in the U.S. was Wall Street, which is still a wall today, financially in certain ways.
All of these things were thought about in conversation with the place.
I feel like that's important not being too precious sometimes. Still moving. It's okay to fail. It's okay to pause and listen.
I think the dream is Time. I'd like to have time, and be in that time in a good way.