Lani Strong
Hotch
Northwest Coast Textile ArtistKlukwan, AK
2020 USA Fellow
This award was generously supported by the Rasmuson Foundation.
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Lani Hotch was born in Klukwan, Alaska, in the 1950s. Hotch is a descendant of a family of weavers that, with the recent addition of her daughter Jenni, now spans five generations. She is committed to keeping the weaving tradition alive and has worked hard to teach others through group projects and apprenticeships since 1992.
She has woven eight major works herself, including four dance robes, one tunic, and two wall hangings, and has initiated and helped complete three group robe projects and two mentor/apprentice robe projects. Her work is featured in several museums and two are in private collections. Her work has also been featured in a few international art shows in Vancouver; the Manawa Pacific Heartbeat show at the Spirit Wrestler Gallery in 2005; and the Time Warp show at the Bill Reid Gallery in 2010-2011.
She placed second for Contemporary Arts in the Sealaska Heritage Institute’s Juried Art Show in 2006. She has also won several awards for her work including the Jennifer Easton Community Spirit Award from the First Peoples Fund in 2011, the Alaska Governor’s Award for Arts in Business Leadership in 2017, and the Native Arts and Culture Foundation Mentor Artist Apprentice Fellowship in 2017. One of Hotch’s highest honors was being proclaimed a “Culture Bearer” by her tribe, the Chilkat Indian Village, in April 2017—the first and only person (thus far) to be given that honor in her community.
Portrait photo by Jones P. Hotch Jr.
Yanwaashaa Power Cuffs, 2018. Merino Sheep wool trimmed with leather and sea otter fur, dimensions 7.5 inches circumference at wrist and 11 inches at wide end. Photo by Lani Hotch.
Berners Bay Weaving, (detail), 2016. Thigh spun merino yarn warp and factory spun merino weft yarns embellished with beaded seaweed design, mussel shells, dimensions 50 × 40 inches. Photo courtesy artist.
Berries on Sunshine Mountain, 2009. Thigh spun merino yarn warp and factory spun merino weft yarns, embellished with sea otter fur at top, glass beads made by glass artist John Svenson, berry beads include some sand from Sunshine Mt, dimensions 40 × 46 inches, including 10 inches of fringe. Photo courtesy artist.
Generations Robe, 2019. Thigh spun merino yarn warp and factory spun merino weft yarns, embellished with sea otter fur and leather ties, dimensions 62 × 48 inches. Photo courtesy artist.
Bear Track & Hood of Raven Hat, 2013. Red and yellow cedar and waxed Irish linen, dimensions: 39 inch circumference and 12 inch diameter at the base; top of the hat has a 16.25 inch circumference with a 4.5 inch diameter, it stands 6 inches high. Photo courtesy artist.