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Kodiak College Proudly presents the Artist of the Month

Arlene Skinner has been weaving grass baskets for over 25 years. Arlene has a strong connection to her art, in that the grass is all hand cut on Kodiak Island and carefully cured and tended before the actual weaving begins.

Arlene believes the warm golden shades of the grass, woven into tiny stitches, need little enhancement, but adds a few select stones or colored silk floss as complementary colors. She is delighted when people appreciate the simplicity, beauty and patience inherent in her work.

Arlene’s work has been shown at local museums and venues numerous times over the years, and her mastery of the weaving art was acknowledged when her work was chosen from statewide applicants for the juried solo show, “Grass Baskets of Kodiak Island”, at the Alaska Museum of History and Arts, Anchorage AK 2006. The show featured 39 unique woven pieces, representing 21 years of Skinner’s work.

Arlene’s other honors include being juried into the state wide call to artists, “Earth, Fire, and Fibre” State Exhibition, Anchorage Museum of History and Arts, four times in 2002, 2000, 1996, and 1992.

Arlene’s baskets are included in the permanent collections of the Anchorage Museum of History and Arts, Alaska Native Medical Center, Anchorage, Baranov Museum, Kodiak, Alutiiq Museum & Archaeological Repository, Kodiak, and numerous private collections.

Arlene actively shares her knowledge of this traditional art and has been teaching weaving at Kodiak College since 1985.