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Theresa Woldstad
Theresa Woldstad
“There is an art to science and a science to art; both are distinct, yet both flourish together”
Analytic thinking focuses and explores the facts, data, and past experiences to find the best answer. Creative thinking is the act of diverging from past wisdom to explore new and different possibilities. Conventional knowledge would suggest that an scientist thinks analytically, while an artist is more of a creative thinker.
Yet, a ceramicist is quite an analytical thinker as they explore the facts and past experiences to combine silica, fluxes and aluminum oxide to create the perfect glaze for a coffee mug. The biologist can get quite creative when standard field operating procedures didn't account for freezing rain and instead requires duck tape, wool cap, and hand warmers to ensure samples are not frozen during remote transport.
It is this overlap between the sciences and arts that has led to my diverse academic degrees of a MS in Wildlife Biology and a MFA in Fine Arts, emphasis in Native Arts. I often blend the two fields of science and art to pursue both scientific research and creative artistic expression.
Indigenous Artist
Indigenous Artist
My maternal native heritage is Kootenai and Coastal Salish from Montana. However, I am a member of the Ketchikan Indian Community, a federally recognized tribe of both Alaska Natives and American Indians. Thus, I am an Indigenous Artist in Alaska and not an Alaska Native Artist. However, most of my academic and mentoring training has been under multiple Alaska Native Artists. Thus most of my artwork focuses on Alaska Native Art.
My weaving artwork includes both Haida and Tlingit style cedar bark and spruce root weaving, Sugpiaq style rye beach grass weaving, and Yupik coil basketry. I am accomplished in Northwest Coast regalia design and I am trained in Northwest Coast form-line design. I am also an Athabaskan style beader, and have started exploring moose leather regalia design.
While I have learned much of my traditional weaving skills from my mother and Alaska Native Elders, I also draw many cultural references from my Norwegian father. Both my paternal grandfather and father were Fish and Wildlife Conservation Officers who lived within remote areas of Alaska. Often my art reflects the complex regulatory narrative of natural art resource management.
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