Gary Knagin

Gary Knagin

Alutiiq artist, Gary Knagin was born in Kodiak in 1957. His parents, Dennis & Julie are both ½ Alutiiq and grew up in Afognak and Karluk, respectively. The young family resided in Afognak the year Gary was born, but moved to Kodiak when he was two years old.

Gary is a self-taught artist that remembers being influenced by his high school art teacher, Mr. Epps. Mr. Epps made school exciting for Gary and encouraged him to dip into real oil paints and go for it, “I remember helping other students on all of their projects and then trying to finish mine in the last week of the quarter.” Gary acknowledges Mr. Epps as having been one of the first people to show him different styles of work.

After high school, Gary attended Denver Automotive and Diesel College and earned certification as an Auto Body Technician. He also took first place in a custom painting contest at the college.

When he returned to Kodiak, the artist set aside both art and his freshly-honed automotive repair skills to go fishing. Like many Kodiakans, Gary fished far and wide, hunting halibut, herring, salmon and crab from Southeast Alaska to the Bering Sea. For 25 years he remained rooted in Kodiak, where the commercial fishing fleet provided employment, but often lived in Lower 48 cities, including Phoenix, Seattle, Denver, and Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. Gary moved "back home" to Kodiak in 2000, and lives here today with his wife Diane and children, Bryan & Bethany.

Gary was camp manager for Dig Afognak in 2000 and 2001. Dig Afognak is part of a community wide effort to carry forward the Alutiiq culture. This camp offers a variety of traditional activities, including art, and youth camps. Gary credits having this job for 2 seasons, in 2001 & 2002, as being the source of his inspiration to pursue his artwork again.

Gary was selected to travel to France in 2006, with the Alutiiq Museum, to study the Pinart collection. His own work was influenced and enhanced by the experience, and he is continuing to use this inspiration to further understand his culture, while advancing his art.

Gary's paintings and carvings are displayed in Native Corporation offices and private homes in Kodiak, Anchorage, Seattle, Portland, Kona, Las Vegas, San Diego, Phoenix, Denver, Ft. Lauderdale and in the Hamptons.

This mask is currently available for purchase at the Alaska Native Arts Foundation, www.alaskanativearts.org