Artwork copyright Tanis S'eiltin. Photo courtesy of the artist.

Artwork copyright Tanis S'eiltin. Photo courtesy of Washington State Arts Commission, 2016.

Artwork copyright Tanis S'eiltin. Photo courtesy of Washington State Arts Commission, 2016 (detail).

Blood Secrets, 2001

Tanis S'eiltin
American Tlingit (born 1951)

Location: University of Washington, Seattle

About the Artwork

Artist Tanis S'eiltin created the multi-media artwork Blood Secrets as an exploration of identity and heritage. She notes, ”My grandparents, Daisy and Jack Joseph, are the impetus for this work and appear in the black and white photo that was taken in Juneau, Alaska.”

This artwork is part of the Contemporary Native American Artwork Collection, on view at the University of Washington Gallagher Law Library. The collection was proposed by artist John Feodorov, who selected the eight represented artists for their rich and forward-thinking cultural expression. Speaking to the contemporary nature of this collection, Feodorov notes “since art, like law, is an ever evolving process, it cannot rely on nostalgia if it is to remain relevant.”

This artwork was acquired for the State Art Collection in partnership with University of Washington.

About the Artist

Tanis S'eiltin creates artworks that explore her identity as a Tlingit (Native Alaskan) woman living in the 21st century. Combining traditional and contemporary artistic techniques, S'eiltin notes that her work "questions the misrepresentation of Indigenous peoples in Western academia, media, and in the minds of mainstream Americans."
S'eiltin earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the University of Alaska Fairbanks in 1986 and a Master of Fine Arts degree in mixed media from the University of Arizona. She is a professor at Fairhaven College at Western Washington University and lives in Bellingham, Northwestern Washington.