Alaskan   Rainbow painting   KidsArt

Carvings of the Arctic

Traditional Art from Alaska


Mask

The native artists of the arctic north make carvings of animals and people. The carvings are made with natural materials such as stone, whalebone, antler, ivory and muskox horn.

The carver chooses the material and looks for the hidden creation in its shape. The rough image is then hacked out by hand tools, or now days using power tools, and the statue is gradually smoothed and polished.

You can make your replica of a native Alaskan stone carving out of:

  • Plaster of paris and vermiculite "stone"
  • a small cardboard milk carton
  • Spoons and sticks as carving tools
Vermiculite is sold in plant stores, and people use it to mix with soil for starting seeds and baby plants. If you can't find vermiculite, you can use sawdust. Plaster of Paris is sold at a hardware store. To make your special carving stone, mix equal parts of plaster of Paris and vermiculite in a plastic bucket. Stir with a stick, and be careful not to breathe the plaster dust. (Adults should do this step for kids younger than 9 or 10.) Then slowly add water and keep stirring until the mixture looks like thick gravy. Pour this mixture into a small cardboard milk carton and let it sit for about an hour. If you have extra mixture, pour it into a plastic bag and put it in the garbage...never wash plaster down the sink. It'll clog the drain.

The plaster will harden, but the vermiculite flakes will keep the chunk of stone soft and lightweight. You can easily peel the cardboard milk carton away and carve the stone by scraping it with spoons and sticks. Traditional Alaskan figures you might make make would be whales, seal, walrus and polar bears. Choose an animal that is round and solid...your plaster stone is too fragile to carve critters with thin necks or legs, like deer or elk. If you carve a bird, make it sitting with its wings folded and legs tucked underneath. if you carve a dog, show it curled up asleep. Your stone carving will work best for a smooth, solid animal.

For more sculpture projects, see the KidsArt booklet KidsArt Sculpture in the KidsArt On-Line Catalog.

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