Phillip Charette

Contact Info:

541.519.2635

phillip@spiritone.com

Phillip Charette Artist Background

Native American Artist
of Yup'ik and French-Canadian Descent

My Professional Background

Most people think of their professional background as having started when they got out of high school or college—basically, whenever they took their first job. I think of it as having started long before then, when I had the opportunity to learn some of the more important lessons in life.

Growing Up...

While I was growing up, I was fortunate to be able to spend summers with my Native American grandparents in Alaska.

While the other kids were all out playing ball, I was more interested in what the elders were doing. So I would sit with my grandparents and the other Yup'ik elders of the village for hours on end, watching them carve and listening to them tell stories. 

I was fascinated by what they had to say and by the art that they were creating.

I tried to learn as much as I could while growing up, and it was at that time, during those summers with the elders, that I learned the fundamental lessons about life and art that are the basis for the Yup'ik art I create today.

The Pressures of Two Worlds...

But as I grew up, I felt more and more the pressures of being caught between two worlds — the Yup'ik world of my grandparents and the modern world I went to school in. Still, by the time I graduated from high-school, the trappings of living in a modern world convinced me that I needed to get a "real" job ... i.e., not a job as an artist.

So, with some hesitation, I decided to get the formal education that my parents wanted me to get, and to pursue my interests in Yup'ik arts and life-ways as a hobby, rather than as a profession.

My Formal Education...

I went to undergraduate school at the University of Alaska Fairbanks and to graduate school at Harvard University. I studied Education, Native Studies, and Administration (A.P.S.P.), and ultimately graduated with a masters degree from Harvard. From there I spent more than nine yeas in a professional career in education administration.

During this entire time, regardless of the "success" I had achieved, I always felt I needed to be doing something related to the arts... specifically, something that related to the stories that I heard the elders tell all those years ago while growing up.

The Wake-Up Call...

And then, in 1999 my doctor told me I would die of a massive heart-attack if I didn't stop doing what I was doing. He said I had too much stress in my life, and that it was caused by the combination of my work and lifestyle. He said I only had about five more years before it would be too late. It was the biggest wake-up call of my life.

I wasn't sure what exactly I would do, nor how I would make a living. But given my interests in the art and life-ways of my Yup'ik heritage, I decided to experiment with a few things that moved me in the direction of being an artist.

Finally, in 2001, I took the plunge, and completed my journey from being a full-time administrator to being a full-time artist. I have never regretted taking that plunge.

My Life as an Artist...

Since then, I've learned a lot about my art and the technologies that go into creating it. I've worked hard, and I'm pleased to see that my works are being well received. In my relatively short time as a full-time artist, my works have been displayed throughout the United States and abroad, in galleries and museums including:

• The Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian, New York
• The Santa Fe Indian Art Market
• The Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art
• The Heard Museum
• The Hallie Ford Museum
• The Portland Art Museum
• Coos Art Museum
• Crow's Shadow Institute of the Arts
• Pataka Museum
• Institute of American Indian Arts
• Naples Museum of Art
• Philbrook Museum of Art
• Anchorage Museum of History and Art
• Weisman Art Museum
• Tucson Musem of Art
• Bishop Museum

I am also pleased to say that I have been the recipient of numerous awards and distinctions, which I've listed elsewhere on this site.

 

My Family Background

I am of Yup'ik and French Canadian descent.

• My father, Gilles, was from Valleyfield, Canada. My mother Tasianna "Nurauq" Charette is Yup’ik, from Kwigillingok, Alaska
• I am named after my grandparents on both sides of my family. Phillip comes from my grandfather Philorome (Phil) Charette on my father's side, and John comes from my grandfather John Hinz on my mother's side.
• My grandfather John "Cunar" and my grandmother Jane "Nausgauq" are of the Kipnuk Area. Grandma was born in Umguumiut, and apa was born in a village, no longer in existence, near Kipnuk
• My maternal great grandmother is "Panigacungaq" and my maternal great grandfather is "Assgulria"
• My paternal great grandmother is "Aarnaquq" and my paternal great grandfather is "Naulalria"
• My great great grandfather is also "Aarnaquq"

 

My Studio

I have lived, studied, and worked in Alaska as well as in various states in the lower 49. Currently, my art studio is in beautiful Baker City, Oregon, which is nestled between the Blue Mountains and the Wallowa Mountains, and is surrounded by four million acres of wilderness and national forest.

Baker County is home to the famous "Hell's Canyon" and is at the nexus of five scenic byways. Hiking, camping, skiing, and general enjoyment of the outdoors are all favorite pastimes of people who live here and travel through.

The last of the Indian Wars were fought here, and considerable "pre-historic" evidence can still be found in the area. And though it is no replacement for Alaska, interestingly enough, many Alaskans have retired to this area.

Please call to make an appointment to visit the studio if you're planning a trip to the area.

Many Thanks

I will be forever grateful to my grandparents and the other elders who gave me the base of insight and knowledge I needed to pursue this path as an artist specializing in Yup'ik art. Thanks as well to all those who have helped me along my path since those summers I spent with the elders —those who have taught me, who have given me encouragement, and who have helped me by showcasing and buying my art.