JUNE 4, 1956

TLINGIT CLARISSA RIZAL BORN—WEAVER, ARTIST, NEA FELLOWSHIP RECIPIENT

Born in Juneau, Alaska, Rizal attended both the Institute of American Indian Art in Santa Fe, and the Pilchuck Glass School in Washington.  She learned the art of Chilkat weaving from Jennie Thlanaut.   A Chilkat robe is the female equivalent of the male-carved totem pole.  A multi-faceted artist and highly respected cultural leader, Clarissa taught others contributing to the revival of Chilkat blanket weaving.  In 2016, Rizal received a National Heritage Fellowship Award from the National Endowment of the Arts.  Her weavings received Best in Show at the Heard Museum Indian Art Fair, Santa Fe Artists Market, Anchorage Museum All Alaska Juried Art Show, and Sealaska Heritage Invitational Art Exhibit.  Visiting fellowships: Pilchuk Art School, Rasmuson Foundation, Native Arts and Cultures Foundation, and the Smithsonian Creative Capital Grant from the First Peoples Fund.  She also earned a George Kaiser Foundation Tulsa Artist Residency.  Rizal passed away December 7, 2016 in Pagosa Springs, CO.

Sources:  “Clarissa Seya (Lampe) Rizal (Hudson): 1956 – 2016,” Juneau Empire, 6/4/2017.  Retrieved 5/7/2020, https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/juneauempire/obituary.aspx?n=clarissa-seya-rizal-hudson-lampe&pid=185717453
 "Clarissa Rizal,” NEA National Heritage Fellowships.  Retrieved 5/7/2020, https://www.arts.gov/honors/heritage/fellows/clarissa-rizal
Photo:  Uyvsdi, 3/8/2009.  A Chilkat blanket being woven by Elsie Gale Stewart-Burton (Haida), from Ketchikan, Alaska.  Public Domain.