Last updated: October 26, 2021
Person
Teri Rofkar
NPS photo/ David H Curl
Quick Facts
Significance:
Lingit Traditional Weaver who passed on knowledge to future generation through outreach events at Sitka National Historical Park
Place of Birth:
San Rafael, CA
Date of Birth:
September 27th, 1956
Date of Death:
December 2nd, 2016
Teri Rofkar, known also by her Lingít clan name, Cháas' koowú tláa was a master in the traditional ways of Raven’s Tail weaving and Spruce Root Basketry. She was also an accomplished educator who passed on these traditional Lingít weaving techniques to future generations so that the skills and art of the Lingít people would not be lost. As a result of her efforts, Rofkar received many awards and an honorary doctoral degree for her work and accomplishments.
Born on September 27th, 1956 in San Rafael, California, she spent her formative years in-between Pelican and Anchorage, Alaska. In 1976, she settled permanently in Sitka, Alaska; the town where her grandmother was born, with her husband Dennis Rofkar.
She was of the Raven Clan moiety of the Lingít People. Her House was the T’ak deintaan (Snail House). She proudly stated that her father was English and that she was a granddaughter of the Kaagwaantaan (Wolf Clan).
Rofkar, as a child learned Lingít weaving techniques from her grandmother, Eliza Monk, although she admits she did not pay much attention or interest at the time. It was not until 1986, when she sat her husband down and told him she wanted to become a professional weaver. Her understanding husband was supportive of her decision.
Now serious about Lingít weaving, she took classes and learned from Delores Churchill, Esther Littlefield, and Lucy Raymond. All of whom taught classes at the Southeast Alaska Indian Cultural Center at Sitka National Historical Park.[1]
“Rofkar specialized in twinning, a method of weaving, and a 6,000-year-old practice. This method employed freehand looming, a long, continuous process that involves creating baskets and ceremonial robes from the roots of spruce trees.”[2]
Weaving is slow and meticulous work; one Lingít robe could take up to 2000 hours, so a great deal of time and dedication is required. A reason for the length of time that was required complete a robe, is that Rofkar practiced the tradition of Raven’s Tail. Author Cheryl Samuel describes, “Raven’s Tail robes are marked by strong linear black and white patterns and sport thick, long tassels which hang pendant from the central design field.”[3] This style of weaving was thought to have been lost, but at the end of the 20th century, Rofkar and other Native Alaskan weavers were able to rediscover the art form.[4]
This was a method of weaving stories into her creations. These stories could be simple designs representing pictures or memories of her life, or they could be complex oral stories passed on from one Lingít generation to the next. In an interview Rofkar stated, “Design work and art was our written language. Our village goes back 11,000 years with its stories of flood times and when the ice advanced.”[5]
That is why Rofkar referred to her works as “indigenous data storage devices.” The same story woven generations back, could be displayed today, as well as displayed in the long future for generations to come. She was proud that her woven robes combined stories, history, math, and science; all at the same time.[6]
Sitka National Historical Park had a robe specially commissioned to Teri Rofkar to celebrate the 100-year anniversary of the park. The robe would tie together Southeast Alaska Native culture and the National Parks service. The park described, “The Centennial Robe, on display now at the Visitor Center, includes bull kelp tassels, Kiks.ádi tattoo patterns, arrowhead designs, and bison wool—all symbols representing different parts of SNHP and Southeast Alaska history.”[1] The robe was “brought out” and dedicated in 2010. Each aspect of the robe’s design was meant to reflect a part of either Alaska Native culture or the National Park Service. For instance, the tattoo pattern represents the Kiks.ádi Lingít and the arrowhead patterns and the bison wool represent the NPS.
Beyond just the techniques used to make baskets and clothing, Rofkar embraced the methods used to gather supplies and materials needed to create her masterpieces. She didn’t go to the store or the market, she would instead go into the woods and scavenge in the natural world. She would collect goat wool, dig up spruce roots, and gathered natural pigments like tree bark to create dyes.[2] She thought of these materials not as resources, but as relationships with the natural world.
In her own words, “So many times, I get credited for the creation or the beauty of it, but I really feel that it’s the elements, the materials themselves, and truly they keep me so humble.”[3]
One of her last projects, in conjunction with Creative Capital, fabricated what she called the “Superman Series”. Rofkar planned on weaving a collection of three different types of robes. The first, was the Mountain Goat DNA robe; it was woven using binary code and designed to show off DNA strands. It was the also the first robe completely made from Sitka mountain goat wool in over 200 years. The second, was the Cloak of the Aurora, a robe interwoven with fiber optics and nano technology. The third, her “political piece” was the Bulletproof Regalia, a robe woven out of ballistic Kevlar. Sadly, Teri passed away before the second and third robes could be completed.[4]
Beyond her artwork, Rofkar was a community educator. Like her predecessors, she too taught classes at Sitka National Historical Park SEAICC, held public demonstrations, held a master apprenticeship with the Alaska State Council on the Arts, and taught at the Sea Alaska Heritage Institute.[5]
“Throughout her life she cultivated awareness surrounding traditional Native American crafts by expanding the discourse surrounding them to include new stories and perspectives. Through this, Rofkar connected the histories of native people to the broader global community.”[6]
Her goal was to continue researching and broadening awareness about traditional art for generations to come, and to make sure that traditional methods were not lost to history.[7] In referring to her work, she said, “I get to carry the culture for a little while, and then I’ll hand it off.”[8]
In Recognition for her work, Rofkar was awarded the 2004 Governor’s Award for Native Art in Alaska, the 2006 USA Rasmuson Fellowship, the 2009 National Heritage Fellowship, the 2009 National Heritage Fellowship Award, the 2012 Creative Capital Visual Arts Award, the 2013 NACF Artist Fellowship, the 2013 Rasmuson Foundation’s Distinguished Artist Award[9], and an honorary Doctor of Fine Arts degree from the University of Alaska Southeast in 2015.[10]
Rofkar’s works can be seen on display in the National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, D.C., the Museum of the North in Fairbanks, Alaska, and the Sitka History Museum.[11]
Teri lived in Sitka for 40 years; she passed away on December 2nd, 2016 at the age of 60. She is remembered not just for beautiful works of art, but also for her passion and dedication to learning, teaching, and passing on the traditional ways of Lingít people. She held a deep connection to her natural world, and her inspiring humility is what her friends and family cherished most deeply.
In referring to herself and her work, Rofkar is quoted as saying “I’m a basket weaver, but my boys call me a basket case!”
To learn more about Teri Rofkar, please listen an interview she gave with Kristen Griffin on May 21st, 1999 in Sitka Alaska,
http://jukebox.uaf.edu/Sitka/program/htm/TeRo.htm
Read this interview Rofkar gave for the National Endowment for the Arts,
https://www.arts.gov/honors/heritage/fellows/teri-rofkar
and watch these videos.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ys_hEhKjM_0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rN9F_zzesy4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hVBvi4x05Ec
[1] Sitka National Historical Park. “Centennial Robe Dancing,”2015. https://www.facebook.com/SitkaNationalHistoricalPark/videos/centennial-robe-dancing/770878019677365/
[2] Sentinel Staff. Teri Rofkar, www.sitkasentinel.com/7/2012-05-10-22-08-43/obituaries/10824-teri-rofkar.
[3] “Teri Rofkar, Rasmuson Foundation Distinguished Artist 2013.” Youtube.com, Rasmuson Foundation, 15 May 2013, Teri Rofkar, Rasmuson Foundation Distinguished Artist 2013.
[4] “Teri Rofkar Presents ‘Tlingit Superman Series’ at the 2015 Creative Capital Retreat.” Youtube.com, Creative Capital, 21 Oct. 2015, www.youtube.com/watch?v=hVBvi4x05Ec.
[5] Reed, Josephine. “Teri Rofkar.” NEA, 6 Dec. 2016, www.arts.gov/honors/heritage/fellows/teri-rofkar.
[6] “Teri Rofkar.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 15 July 2020, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teri_Rofkar.
[7] Sentinel Staff. Teri Rofkar, www.sitkasentinel.com/7/2012-05-10-22-08-43/obituaries/10824-teri-rofkar.
[8] “Teri Rofkar, Rasmuson Foundation Distinguished Artist 2013.” Youtube.com, Rasmuson Foundation, 15 May 2013, Teri Rofkar, Rasmuson Foundation Distinguished Artist 2013.
[9] “Teri Rofkar.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 15 July 2020, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teri_Rofkar.
[10] Sentinel Staff. Teri Rofkar, www.sitkasentinel.com/7/2012-05-10-22-08-43/obituaries/10824-teri-rofkar.
[11] “Teri Rofkar.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 15 July 2020, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teri_Rofkar.
[1] Griffin, Kristen. Teri Rofkar Part 2, 1999, jukebox.uaf.edu/Sitka/program/htm/TeRo.htm.
[2] “Teri Rofkar.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 15 July 2020, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teri_Rofkar.
[3] Samuel, Cheryl. The Raven’s Tail. (University of British Columbia Press, 1987) 16.
[4] Anchorage Museum, “Remembering Teri Rofkar,” 2016. https://www.anchoragemuseum.org/about-us/museum-journal/museum-journal-archive/remembering-teri-rofkar/.
[5] Wright, Jordan, “Dream Weaver: Internationally Renowned Artist Teri Rofkar’s Incredible Textile Masterpieces,” Indian Country Today, 2012. https://indiancountrytoday.com/archive/dream-weaver-internationally-renowned-artist-teri-rofkar-s-incredible-textile-m-1uTq0pDS50WhkdgKAVXL9w
[6] “Teri Rofkar Presents ‘Tlingit Superman Series’ at the 2015 Creative Capital Retreat.” Youtube.com, Creative Capital, 21 Oct. 2015, www.youtube.com/watch?v=hVBvi4x05Ec.