A total of $300,000 is available for distribution in amounts of up to $20,000 for individuals and programs. Applications and eligibility rules are available at http://www.nativeartsandcultures.org/programs.

“The Native Arts & Cultures Foundation celebrates the role of artists as culture bearers and critical thinkers,” said Reuben Roqueñi, NACF program director. “The creative process makes a profound contribution to intellectual inquiry and to the strengthening of communities.”

The first initiative, called “Artistic Innovation: Through the Soul of an Artist,” will support the creation of new work by contemporary Native artists. These awards are designed to propel indigenous creators into unique and imaginative ways of interacting with the world, informed by tradition and culture. Projects might include work in visual arts, film, installation, dance, music, literature, drama, spoken-word or interdisciplinary projects.

The second initiative – “Mobilizing the Community Through the Arts” – will support community-based programs that involve the continuity and expression of cultural knowledge and artistic practices. With an arts-based approach, projects might address issues such as land stewardship, social justice, education or other topics.

With its third initiative – “Strengthening the Arts & Cultures Infrastructure” – NACF will award grants to pre-selected Native arts organization for program administration, infrastructure improvements, outreach, professional development and other endeavors.

Earlier this spring, the foundation announced several new additions to its boards. Actor Adam Beach (Salteaux Tribe), known for his work in films such as “Flags of Our Fathers” and television shows such as “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit,” joined the NACF board of advisors, alongside singer Buffy Sainte-Marie (Cree). Keller George (Oneida Nation), well-known in Indian Country for his work with the National Congress of the American Indians and the National Museum of the American Indian, joined the NACF board of directors.

NACF is supported in part by gifts from the Ford Foundation, the Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation and the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians.

About the Native Arts & Cultures Foundation

The Native Arts & Cultures Foundation is the first permanently endowed national philanthropic organization dedicated exclusively to the revitalization, appreciation and perpetuation of Native arts and cultures. NACF works to increase the capacity of Native cultural practices by investing in communities and artists with an eye toward cultural continuity, innovation, environmental stewardship and social justice. For more information, call 360.314.2421 or visit www.nativeartsandcultures.org.

This post brought to you by the author and TribalBiz.com

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“This is a rare opportunity to honor Montana’s Indian veterans, and all veterans, as well as to honor the important work of retaining native languages,” said Society Director Richard Sims.

The Smithsonian created the exhibit to tell the story of Indian Marines and soldiers who used their coded native languages as a weapon against U.S. enemies.

The Navajo code talkers during World War II have received the most recognition, but the exhibit shows that Native Americans were first enlisted to relay messages in their own languages during World War I.

Marines and soldiers from 16 tribal nations served as code talkers, including the Assiniboine, Sioux, Navajo, Hopi, Cherokee, Chippewa and Cree.

The exhibit also addresses the irony the Indians faced as they transitioned from Indian boarding schools, where they were punished for speaking their native languages, to being honored for using that language as a vital secret weapon in combat.

Montana has the opportunity to bring the exhibit to the state because the historical society is an affiliate of the Smithsonian.

Montana Historical Society Board of Trustees member George Horse Capture of Great Falls initiated the exhibit when he was a Smithsonian curator, and will serve as guest curator of the Montana exhibit.

The historical society plans to launch the exhibit in Helena in April and then take it to the state’s reservations. The society is also working with tribal veterans’ representatives and tribal councils who want to contribute in their own way in honoring and celebrating their warriors during each four-day event.

The society is seeking sponsors to help cover the $35,000 to $40,000 cost for creating and presenting the traveling exhibit.

This post brought to you by the author and TribalBiz.com

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No written records of Native Americans exist before the 1500s, when the European seamen discovered the American continent. The period before 1500s is considered by scholars as prehistoric. During that time and after, Native Americans had created their own states, history and art. Native American art is thought to be the link between natives and Europeans, the only way to communicate ideas between the two cultures. When the Europeans came, slight changes in Native American art resulted, due to the new way of life that native people had to take.

Native American art is our way to reach the native Americans’ views and history, to learn more about them. That’s why culture researchers explore Native American art and make it an object of many scholastic discussions. There exists a qualification of the Native American culture, branching off into five main culture districts or zones, which is done for easier interpretation of the works of art and culture. They are, namely, the East, the Plains, Southwest and Northwest coast, and the Arctic. The forms of Native American art differ considerably regarding different districts. That depends on the different weather conditions, various traditions among different groups of natives, natural environment, social order, different religious beliefs, and so on.

The difference of Native American works of art in different districts is so astounding that we may even wonder if they came from one continent. The basic reason for this is about the purpose of art in the lifestyle of Native Americans. Native American art served many purposes, and most of all it was meant to be the visual representation of different myths and religious beliefs. The mythological origin of Native American art gives some reason why the forms of art differ significantly in different parts of the continent: because of the different myths and religions that existed between tribes. Native American art is done to meet various needs; to be a traditional linkage between generations (like the carved totem poles); to serve practical necessities( Natives created beautifully painted pots, vases, utensils, woven mats, rugs, blankets, coverings, home-made clothes and jewelry in astonishing combinations of colours); to be a symbol of rituals (for example art was used in the ritual for rain, and in healing ceremonies, for which different masks and rich garments were produced.)

Native American art is so various and hard to categorize also because of the materials used for the creative activities. Many artists used materials, which they found in their natural surroundings. Feathers, porcupine quills, tree bark, wood, animal skins and hair were all combined in the artistic creation. Different artists used different technologies for the making of beautiful things. Native American art is composed of artworks, made by carving, painting, weaving, sewing, or building. And different technologies tend to slightly vary in different regions, so that artworks are not the same, even if the same materials are used for their making.

Many Native American artworks were intended both for ceremonial purposes and for home usage in the daily life of people. Garments and different bowls served many functions. Rituals and ceremonies were so various that many artworks were produced for their accomplishment. Native Americans had rituals for almost everything: and a large part of their works of art was used for different ceremonies. Totems from Pacific Northwest were a family value and represented the people from the clan, and a lot of effort was put into making those magnificent big poles.  Masks were used for communication with the spirits in healing ceremonies. To serve its purpose to the point, a work of art was expected to be beautifully done, so that artists had to make the best they could to produce majestic artworks.

Nowadays there are two branches of Native American art- artists gone into the mainstream of making contemporary art-like photographs, paintings on canvas or performances, and others who continue to work using traditional Native American art technologies.

Article by Robbie Darmona – an article writer (http://www.robbiedarmona.com) who writes on a wide variety of subjects. For more information visit www.artsbury.com.

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I’ve always appreciated the work of artists who create handcrafted Native American porcelain dolls. Knowing all the fine detail that goes into these beautiful dolls with all the time spent lovingly applying the finishing touches and little details makes the wonder of the doll even more fascinating. It takes a special talent to craft these works of art. If you can find a handcrafted Native American porcelain doll, it is definitely worth whatever the price. Owning such an original collectors item will bring joy for many years to come. Even your children will cherish such a doll and pass it down to their children. One purchase can produce generations of smiles.

To make the best of your investment, you need to look for quality not only in the porcelain but also the costuming, the estimated longevity to stand up to a variety of uses and many play dates, and lastly a beautiful piece to compliment your home.

When looking for quality, keep in mind that the quality of the porcelain greatly affects how long the doll will look good. A handcrafted Native American porcelain doll is made with the finest porcelain hands, feet and heads to ensure permanence in your home. The finer quality porcelains will not have glazes that crack with age or yellow.

If the costuming is hand stitched, make sure the stitches are close and fine. If the attire is not of the best quality, it will fall apart quickly no matter how well stitched it is. The best beads are made of glass and the best hair is one that will not tangle easily. With all these factors taken into account, you can feel certain that your handcrafted Native American porcelain doll will stand up to kiss smudges on the cheek by your child or a minor tea party spill.

With the neutral colors in the clothing, even on display the doll will be an eye catcher. The earth tones make the beadwork stand out brilliantly so be sure it is pleasing to your eye. If the doll is a gift for a young child, a lack of beadwork may make a better choice and for tactile enjoyment, genuine furs in the costume can give little fingers great joy. The hairstyle is usually a very simply style such a couple ponytails. A lot of expression in the face is a fabulous way to engage your child in a fun game of make-believe.

One with it’s little tongue peeking between the lips in a mischievous grin may just make a normally shy child giggle with delight and want to share her doll with others helping her get over her shyness.

Make the best choice when purchasing your next doll; choose a handcrafted Native American porcelain doll to join your family. Not only will you love and cherish it, so will everyone who stops to visit, young and old alike. You can be sure she will be gazed upon in admiration, given gentle hugs or share secrets with your children, and bring a bright spot to that mantle that is begging for something unique. There is nothing more lovely than bringing a bit of America’s history to life in your home. Handcrafted Native American porcelain dolls create your home around them bringing warmth to any décor yet add vibrancy and tangible beauty through the use of facial expression and authentic costuming. Not every doll can make a house a home simply by being at hand, choose one of quality and she will quickly become an integral part of the family with ease and grace.

A-Porcelain-Doll.com supplies porcelain dolls in general, and Native American porcelain dolls in particular. They specialize in handcrafted porcelain dolls by internationally acclaimed artists from a variety of cultures. You can find Indian dolls, Persian dolls, Japanese dolls, Irish dolls, Black dolls, Ethnic dolls, and much more at A-Porcelain-Doll.com.

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Native American flutes are enjoyed and played in many cultures around the world. I have always loved Native flute music for its beautiful sound quality and ability to bring a tranquil calm to the ambiance where it is played. Hearing Native flutes always bring back memories of my mother’s kitchen where she often played flute music to create a tranquil environment in her home. The soothing flute music cures the soul and creates a calming affect on the spirit of all who hear it.

If you look at the history of Indian instruments, you will realize that like the drum, the flute plays a meaningful role in the daily lives, ceremonies and rituals of many American Indian people. Native American flute music takes you to a place where descendants look to their forefathers to guide them, and use their instruments to unite them with the Great Spirit.

Flutes in one form or another have been around for centuries and have been part of many tribal cultures around the world. The reflection of flute instruments in the past shows us that they did exist in ancient Tribes. The origin and design of the Native American flute is a little more complicated to figure out due to the fact that there were no written languages among North American Tribes at that time. It wasn’t until explorers documented their travels and findings, that record of the Native American flute is found in history.

You can’t take in the true value of Native flute music until you learn that society came close to obliterating this amazing art with strict assimilation rules. The 1900′s brought with it harsh rules for Native Americans that almost succeeded to forever silence their culture and people. Along with many other Indigenous traditions, these rules stopped the development of Native flute music. It wasn’t until the middle of the century that assimilation laws started to alleviate and Native traditions were able to be practiced within the Tribe and out in the open once again. Over the years, the prestige of the Native American flute grew to the point that flute makers began generating these instruments in large numbers to sell, and not just for personal playing purposes. The materials used to make the flutes also turned from undeveloped crude instruments to more improved, with the use of power tools and the ability to obtain different kinds of woods, plastics and metals.

Now days, there are a variety of choices available when choosing a Native style flute, and it is just a matter of personal preference. There are some recommendations you should follow when buying an instrument. There are numerous types of flutes, but all have one of two different sound qualities. The sound style of the flute is based on whether it is a Plains style or a Woodlands style. A Plains style flute produces a buzzing type sound while a Woodlands style will produce a bell tone. No matter which type of flute you buy, it is a good idea to check the characteristics of each individual instrument, including the mouthpiece, size, shape and number of holes, in order to choose one that you like. Native American flutes also come in different kinds of woods ranging from exquisite, rather expensive woods, to simple pieces of pine, cane or bamboo.

Due to the popular interest in flute music, you can now buy Native American flutes online, in various music stores, and in specialty shops that sell Indian musical instruments and western style home decorating accessories. If you are looking for an easy instrument for playing or decorative purposes, or are searching for real Indian musical instruments to use in Native ceremonies and events, consider keeping the culture and instruments of Indian people alive with the peaceful tones of Native American flutes.

Craig Chambers is the director of Mission Del Rey and offers free information online about choosing Native American flutes for various playing purposes. For more information visit http://www.missiondelrey.com

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“They used to come into the park, driving,” Povah recalled. Indians would bring beadwork, leatherwork, clothing, “and ask Dad to buy it. That’s how we started our collection.”

Now 88 years old, Povah has donated more than 1,200 items from her family’s collection – from Indian crafts to a 1930s-vintage yellow Yellowstone tour bus – to the Museum of the Rockies.

“It’s really the place I wanted it to be,” Povah said recently at a museum reception. Other museums were interested, but, she said, “I felt holding it in Montana, near the source of the Indians who made so much of the collection” was “appropriate.”

“I am so excited,” said Shelley McKamey, the museum’s director and dean. “This is the most significant historic collection we’ve received since the founding of our museum” more than 50 years ago.

The Hamilton Stores company, founded by Ellie’s father, Charles, was Yellowstone’s concessionaire from 1915 – when visitors still traveled through the park in horse-drawn stages – until 2002.

The collection includes documents, Indian crafts, historic photos and several old vehicles. There’s a tow truck made from an old tour bus, and a cart that used to carry garbage to feed the park’s bears. A horse-drawn green Conoco gasoline wagon offers a reminder of the park’s first opening up to automobiles in 1916.

The public won’t be able to see most of the collection right away. It will take a few years to catalog everything and conserve things properly. Eventually it will become a traveling exhibit.

McKamey said many of her favorite pieces are buckskin or cloth Indian dresses, which are fragile. Some are decorated with porcupine quills or with metal thimbles.

Along with the collection, Povah gave the museum a gift of $250,000 over five years, which will be used to match federal funds and cover the costs of the collection’s care, storage, cataloguing and preservation, McKamey said. Lots of people want to donate things to the museum, she said, but it needs the resources to care for them.

“Ellie’s generosity made it possible,” McKamey said.

“This collection of artifacts and this funding is going to help us interpret the cultural history of Yellowstone National Park in a way it’s never been done,” said Michael Fox, the museum’s history curator.

Several Indian craft items from the collection were on display at last Thursday’s event. There was a beaded Indian vest with American flag and rose designs from the Nez Perce tribe, a Navajo wedding basket, Pueblo Indian bowls, and woven hats from the Hupa Indians of California.

Seated in a wheelchair, Povah said she’d broken her leg in a fall, but she has always been active. Last fall, she said, she took a trip to Africa with her kids and their spouses, and was only home in Santa Barbara, Calif., for a few days before packing up for a 10-day horseback trip in Mexico.

Did she ride horseback, too?

“Of course!” she said, laughing.

She was clearly enjoying the museum’s celebration of her donation.

“I think this is going to be a wonderful day,” Povah said.

This post brought to you by the author and TribalBiz.com

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The Beautiful blue and green hues of turquoise have long been prized by the Native American peoples of the southwestern part of the USA. Entire cultures were built on mining turquoise and crafting sacred and special items from the attractive stone in areas which are now part of both New Mexico and Nevada. American Indian peoples were making necklace strands and other turquoise jewelry by hand many centuries before the first European settlers arrived. Because turquoise was so highly prized, it was widely exchanged and circulated among the Native peoples of the Americas, and the each of the tribes developed their own unique names for the striking blue stone. Scientific testing has proven that some ancient beads found in central and South America were originally dug from the Cerrillos turquoise mines near Santa Fe, New Mexico.

When the Europeans brought the technology of working metals like silver with them to the new world, the American Indians who learned the silver smith trade learned eventually began to add turquoise with the silver to develop their own special style of jewelry. A Zuni man by the name of Kineshde is believed to be the first to add turquoise to the hand crafted silver items he was making in the late 1800s.

Turquoise first came into popular high fashion in the US during the early 1890s, but Persian turquoise was the focus of the demand at that time, and only a few deposits of high quality turquoise were known in the US. In the following years, a number of high quality deposits previously worked by Native Americans were “rediscovered”, and shortly after 1900 and Americans began to recognize that American turquoise from the Western US was the equal of any in the world. Interest again began to peak around 1908-1910, and a considerable amount of American turquoise was mined, especially in Nevada. The majority of the Turquoise jewelry produced prior to 1910 was made by well-known jewelry manufacturing companies like Tiffany’s, and was produced in the standard Victorian styles of those times.

None of this was what we would recognize as Indian style turquoise jewelry. There were a few Native Americans making turquoise and silver pieces in what we now see as the traditional style, but they produced very few pieces and their very simple tools increased the man hours each piece needed for completion. That era was essentially the dawn of the traditional styles for silver-turquoise jewelry. America’s fascination with turquoise and genuine Indian Jewelry really began in earnest during the 1920′s when more people from outside the southwest began to see the beauty of this artistic jewelry.

At that time, the Harvey House restaurant chain opened a number of facilities across the southwest during the great days of popular rail travel across the US. At first, Indian Jewelry was only sold as curios in the restaurants for the patrons touring the west. Earrings and thin, small bracelets stamped with arrows and bows and containing symmetrically cut small oval pieces of turquoise were the types most in demand. The pieces produced during this time are still termed as having been made in the “Fred Harvey” style. Heavy Indian Jewelry did not become popular until after 1925, when the classic squash-blossom necklaces were first brought to the tourist market. The squash-blossom craze lasted until about 1940, when they were discontinued for the most part by most Indian artisans for requiring too much work and too much turquoise.

In the 1920′s and 1930′s, the concho belt changed from a simple silver belt to a more ornate belt with one to multiple turquoise stones in all the individual sections of the belt. The tourist jewelry of that era is highly collectible today. It began to be noticed that sales of Native American jewelry had significant potential to provide a reliable income source to tribal members across Arizona and New Mexico. During those years, schools and classes were established at several reservations to train young men in the trade of making Native American style Sterling and turquoise jewelry. In the following decades, many very talented artists came out of these schools.

During the years following WWII, many Americans traveled across the country, and on their trips through the Arizona-New Mexico area, discovered that local traders had rooms full of this Native American jewelry, which the traders called pawn pieces. Most of these were jewelry pieces the Indian people made for themselves and pawned for one of two reasons: either they needed money, or it was considered a safe storage place. As a result of the popularity of these pawn pieces, a host of trading posts sprang up in the Southwest and knowledge of this unique style of jewelry became much more widespread. New jewelry was also created to meet the growing tourist demand. Those who appreciated the beautiful American turquoise began to recognize the general differences in matrix patterns and color, etc. between the different mine sources. During this time, which extended to the early 1950′s, turquoise began to be named, for sales purposes, after the mine in which it was found, such as Lone Mountain, Royston, Blue Gem, and others.

An increasing number of American Indians continued to handcraft silver jewelry in the 1950s and early 1960′s in the traditional way. Up to that time their work was generally popular only in the southwest region of the US, but the increasing amount of material available began to enable a larger audience to see and appreciate this beautiful style of jewelry art. Even so, it did not become widely popular across the entire US until the late 1960′s and early 1970′s. At that time the simple and natural beauty of turquoise jewelry became the rage of the American fashion scene. The prices of the old pawn jewelry rocketed upward, and a craze for Indian turquoise jewelry swelled and boosted demand (and prices) for turquoise to previously undreamed levels.

The increased prices and demand caused the re-opening of many mines and the import of Indian “style” jewelry made by manufacturers in Mexico, Taiwan, and the Philippines. In time, the market became glutted, the consumer was confused by overpriced synthetic, stabilized and plastic imitation materials and by 1981 the supply was high but the demand was gone. The market collapsed and most of the American turquoise mines were shut down and have remained closed since that time. Turquoise demand hit a low water mark in the early 1980s, but has been slowly and steadily increasing in popularity since that time. Most American mines have remained closed, and in recent years high demand for natural American turquoise has caused once again significant increases in prices.

If you would like to see some of our beautiful turquoise jewelry and purchase some turquoise directly from the mine owner, take a look at our turquoise jewelry: http://nevada-outback-gems.com/Finish_turq_jewel/premium_turquoise_jewelry.htm

Chris Ralph writes on small scale mining and prospecting for the ICMJ Mining Journal. He has a degree in Mining Engineering from the Mackay School of Mines in Reno, and has worked for precious metal mining companies conducting both surface and underground operations. After working in the mining industry, he has continued his interest in mining as an individual prospector. He can be reached at P.O. Box 3104 Reno, Nevada 89505. His home page on gems and jewelry can be viewed at: http://nevada-outback-gems.com

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Native American Indian art in the American southwest is dominated by the magnificent pottery and jewelry in the region.  When it comes to the Pacific Northwest region which covers the states of Oregon, Washington, British Columbia (Canada) and the southern part of Alaska, the Native American art here is mostly wood carvings.  This is not surprising since unlike the southwest desert, the Pacific Northwest is abundant with forests which have provided the wood as raw material for the region’s Native American Indian art.

The wood carvings of the Pacific Northwest Native American art come in many different forms.  The huge totem poles which are carved on entire tree trunks are probably the most famous.  Certainly the most common form of contemporary Pacific Northwest Native American art is the plaque wood carving.  The entire range of Pacific Northwest Native American Indian art subjects including eagles, ravens, thunderbirds, bears, killer whales and salmons are carved as plaques to be hung on the wall.  A more complex project and usually higher priced would be the masks which are also carved out of wood.  The Pacific Northwest Native American artists make some of the most striking aboriginal masks in the world.

Creative artists and carvers from this region have also used wood to carve out bowls, paddles, rattles and boxes which are all expertly decorated with Pacific Northwest Native American Indian designs.  Some carvers have even carved more day to day objects such as letter openers out of wood again decorated with the region’s Native motifs.  Although not restricting themselves to just wood, the Pacific Northwest Native American artists also do art prints, paintings and precious metal jewelry but overall wood is still the most common material used in their artwork.

The Pacific Northwest style of Native American Indian art is still unknown to many parts of North America and the rest of the world but this will definitely change as the 2010 winter Olympics in British Columbia approaches.  The world will see British Columbia and as visitors to this Canadian province have already noticed, there are fine examples of Pacific Northwest Native American Indian art everywhere one goes in the west coast of Canada.

Clint Leung is owner of Free Spirit Gallery, an online gallery specializing in Inuit art and Native American Indian art including carvings and prints.  Also numerous information articles and videos are available at his website, http://www.FreeSpiritGallery.ca.

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Native American art has been popular amongst Europeans ever since the discovery of the American continent. But it changed significantly since the Europeans interfered in the natural lifestyle of the Native Americans. Nowadays, the term “modern art” is very popular even when considering the traditional Native American art. Art is subject to changes when other things like social and political order, way of life, and environment are also changing.

There have been hot debates amongst scholars and art critics about when these changes occurred in Native American art. Some say the beginning was when the Native American artists started producing artworks to suit Western viewers. Others support the view that the Western media was the reason for Indian artists to become more popular and eventually be influenced by the European artistic mainstream. And the last group of critics claims that modernization began when some artists started using the modernistic methods and techniques in their own artworks. It is highly important to specify when exactly things changed, as the art production of the Native Americans unites in its essence the significant role that different ethnic background plays on the personal artistic development. A proper way we can use to examine the ethnic influence is by making a case study.

The artistic development of Angel DeCora, the famous Hochunk painter, illustrator and designer, can be the perfect way to explore the topic. DeCora was a well-known and a highly prolific artist. She became popular before the World War 1 but her career was in bloom somewhere in between the 20s and the 30s. She was a student of some leading European-American art teachers, so she was very influenced by the modern art. Anyway, she managed to stay true to her origin and created special paintings, few of which survived, and a lot of illustrations, using a combination of traditional Native American art and modernistic trends.

Even though a true assessment and evaluation of DeCora’s artworks is hard to make as too many of them were lost throughout the years, her creative work was soaked up with the influence of Native American art. Several works are identified as hers: two illustrated stories for Harper’s New Monthly Magazine, some illustrations published in Southern Workman, Indian Craftsman and American Indian Magazine, also the illustrations of five books. Her paintings are even harder to find- only three canvases can be pledged positively as hers. No matter how little survived, one thing can be said for sure about DeCora- her works were influenced by the Native American art, although more and more modern aspects can be found in her later canvases from the 20s and 30s. Perhaps as a reason can serve DeCora’s mastery of European-American illustration, which made the natural influence from her ancestors grow weaker.

Nowadays, a true Native American art that intensely keeps the traditions is hard to find, and that is easily explained by the strong influence from the modern artistic mainstream. Despite this, ethnic background plays an important role for shaping the artist’s view of life. Native American art will always be an inspiration for native Americans and won’t be overshadowed by any artistic trend. Traditional art gives identity to the native American artist and cannot be substituted by any other form of expression.

Article by Robbie Darmona – an article writer who writes on a wide variety of subjects. For more information go to http://www.artsbury.com.

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His father had built a backyard patio out of cedar. Tobin took out his pocket knife and started whittling, earning a spanking.

Tobin kept sharpening his skills over the decades. Now 56, he’s still at it, but in an unusual setting. A 14-year prison term for a million-dollar clam poaching operation landed him in the minimum security unit at the Monroe Correctional Complex.

He has started a program there that has sparked the imagination of prison staff and inmates alike. He is teaching 10 inmates how to carve a totem pole, working within the strict confines of prison while earning 42 cents an hour for a skill that would otherwise earn him thousands of dollars.

“You do a lot of poles,” Tobin said. “Some mean more than others. This one will always mean something.”

Tobin, a Squaxin Island Indian, pitched the idea for the pole to prison superintendent Scott Frakes about three months ago.

Tobin said he would spend his money to buy carving tools, arrange the donation of a cedar log and teach prisoners – who include other American Indians – how to carve.

Frakes said he was chuckling on the inside when he heard the plan, because Tobin’s proposal closely mirrored the speech the staff gives to prisoners who are in educational programs. He agreed, in part because Tobin was in minimum security, and in part because he was impressed.

“If he had asked to do this by himself, off in a corner, and turn it into a hobby craft for himself, it wouldn’t have happened,” Frakes said.

Tobin called a family friend, Bob Coster, who lives near Snohomish. Coster asked his neighbors to donate a 74-year-old cedar from their lot. Coster cut the tree down and arranged transportation of the 25-foot log.

Tobin had his lawyer purchase tools to carve it for about $1,000.

Those had to be processed by the prison’s tool control sergeant. Like the hammers and screwdrivers used in other programs, Tobin’s adzes and knives were inventoried, labeled and sent to maintenance, where a tool box was made that would help ensure none went missing.

Frakes said he’s prepared to stand behind Tobin and the program if people object to it. That could happen. After all, Tobin has stirred up controversy before.

Tobin was involved in a hired murder in 1986. A plea agreement for manslaughter earned him a 10-year sentence, according to the Department of Corrections.

After his release, the Port of Olympia hired him to carve a totem pole, but a public outcry led the port to sell it.

Tobin’s now serving time for a geoduck-poaching scam he ran a few years ago. He had been helping the police find poachers, all the time running his own million-dollar operation behind their backs, according to a 2003 Seattle Times story.

Still, Frakes said he didn’t expect much controversy. He said the pole has no measurable cost to taxpayers. The inmates work as volunteers, while Tobin earns his prison wage. An expert in American Indian art said Tobin could possibly earn $3,000 per foot for his work.

“The fact that this is being done gratis should take away much, if not all, of the argument,” Frakes said.

Tobin usually goes to work after breakfast at 7:30 a.m.

On a recent Tuesday, he was tutoring four men. Half the pole sat under a makeshift tarp. The ground was littered with cedar chips. Nearby, a sign reminded Tobin’s students, most in prison on drug or assault offenses, to keep 5 feet away from a fence topped with two coils of razor-wire.

“We’re under the microscope right now,” said Brodie Stevens, a Tulalip Indian. “This is our first project. If it goes according to plan, like it’s supposed to, this can keep going.”

Tobin joked with the men. He imitated Popeye. He said one of the inmates was Pamela Anderson’s sister. They laughed.

“He’s wonderful,” said James Biss, a 44-year-old inmate. “He’s got it this far, getting the tools in here.”

After two weeks, the pole was taking shape. The base depicted a bear protecting a woman who was carved with detail down to her smooth toenails.

Other designs needed to be carved, like a whale in combat with the bear. Tobin said their deadlocked battle will symbolize the idea of respect, a part of prison life, while a shaman will represent the wisdom of judges and lawyers.

“You usually carve the environment or the setting of whoever commissioned the pole, whatever the energy is,” he said. “And the energy here is everybody makes mistakes.”

The 10 men work in shifts until about 3 p.m. Prison life can slow them down. On Tuesday, corrections officers had to make an unexpected count of all the inmates, halting work for Tobin and his men.

“We had to inventory his tools and we had to send him in,” said Kari Styles, Tobin’s unit supervisor.

Tobin’s work has attracted attention from inmates and guards, Styles said. His work area is cordoned off and posted as out-of-bounds.

“I get phone calls asking me, ‘Can I go look at the totem pole, can I go over there?”’ Styles said.

Tobin could be released between 2011 and 2016. He wants to start a business that teaches carving and sells American Indian art after he gets out.

“I think I’ll stay off the fishing for a while,” he said. “Even though I like my clam chowder, I’ll just go get Campbell’s and call it a day.”

As for the pole, Frakes said it will stay at the 365-acre prison complex.

“It’s not something we’ll turn into money or ever think of turning into money,” he said. “It’s kind of a priceless gift.”

That’s fine by Tobin. He said the pole will be a tribute to the fact that prisoners can come together and make things work.

“This pole,” he said, took the life of the tree, “but it’s going to live at least another 10 decades.”

This post brought to you by the author and TribalBiz.com

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