Artist, founder of UAF Native Art Center Ron Sengungetuk passes away
Iñupiaq artist Ronald Senungetuk, 87, passed away on Jan. 21, 2020 at his home in Homer. He was a world renowned sculptor, silversmith and wood carver, who also had massive cultural influence as an artist, educator and mentor. The University of Alaska Fairbanks conferred emeritus status on Senungetuk when he retired as head of the Art Department in 1986, and awarded him an honorary doctorate of fine arts in 2015.
Senungetuk was one of the first Alaska Native professors to receive tenure from UAF. He founded the Native Art Center in 1965. For more than 50 years, the Native Arts Center has helped talented rural Alaska Native students who might not otherwise have had the opportunity or aspiration to attend college.
“Describing Ron as an ‘internationally acclaimed artist’ is an understatement,” said Da-ka-xeen Mehner, director of the UAF Native Art Center. “He is a visionary who understands the needs of rural Alaska Native artists because he grew up in Wales, a traditional Inupiaq village and went on to study in Norway on a Fulbright Scholarship. One of his most meaningful achievements was establishing the Native Arts Center because it nurtured talent and provided opportunities for rural Alaska Native artists who did not meet typical university admissions requirements.”
In 1967, the Alumni Association commissioned Senungetuk to design and construct the University of Alaska Ceremonial Mace for the golden anniversary year of the founding of the university. The beautiful piece was made with a rosewood handle and, in the center of the head of the mace framed with silver and jade, are the seals of the University of Alaska and the State of Alaska mounted back-to-back. Senungetuk also designed and constructed a stand for the mace and a wooden box in which it is stored and transported. The mace is carried by the Marshal of the University in the processions that begin and end academic exercises, including commencements, inaugurations, and special convocations.
Born in Wales, Alaska, on the western tip of the Seward Peninsula, Senungetuk grew
up with traditional Alaska Native values, surrounded by a rich cultural heritage.
His creative talents and intellect were recognized at an early age and he was sent
to study at the Bureau of Indian Affairs high school in Sitka, Alaska. Senungetuk
then went on to receive his Bachelor of Fine Arts from the School for American Craftsman
at the Rochester Institute of Technology, and a degree from Statens Handverks og Kunstindustri
Skole, Oslo, Norway, where he studied sculpture and metalsmithing.
He received many distinguished honors and awards including a Fulbright Scholarship
to study in Oslo, Norway, the State of Alaska Governor’s Award for the Arts, and a
Distinguished Artist Award from The Rasmuson Foundation. The Alaska State Council
on the Arts awarded him a lifetime achievement award in 2014. He served on the boards
of the Homer Foundation and Bunnell Street Arts Center.
Senungetuk is survived by his wife, Turid, who is also an artist, and their daughter,
Heidi.
More online about Ron Senungetuk:
- A video made for his lifetime achievement award from the Alaska State Council on the Arts in 2014
- A brief biography and examples of his work at the website of the Rasmuson Foundation, which gave him a Distinguished Artist Award in 2008