Clarissa Rizal, a Tlingit weaver is among the recipients of a National Heritage Fellowship. Photo by Tom Pich / National Endowment for the Arts
Three Native artists have been selected for a prestigious national fellowship. Bryan Akipa, Clarissa Rizal and Theresa Secord are part of the 2016 National Heritage Fellowships class. They will be recognized at an awards ceremony in Washington, D.C., on September 28 and will participate in a concert on September 30. “Everyone congratulating me is really special, especially since it’s for the traditional flute," Akipa, who is a member of the Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate, told the Associated Press. He is being recognized for his flute-making and flute-playing work. Rizal, who is Tlingit from Alaska, practices the Chilkat blanket weaving tradition. "These difficult and time-consuming twined robes made of wool and cedar bark depict highly stylized images of the crests which embody a clan’s history and eminence," her bio on the NEA website states. Secord, a member of the Penobscot Nation, is a basketmaker. She is a co-founder of the Maine Indian Basketmaker’s Alliance. Read More on the Story:
Dakota flute-maker, player earns nation’s highest folk honor (AP 9/11)
Akipa to be honored at NEA event in D.C. (The Wahpeton Daily News 9/7)
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