Tanis S’eiltin: Tlingit Wearable Sculpture and Cultural Resilience

Tanis S’eiltin, a Tlingit artist, creates wearable sculpture rooted in her cultural heritage. Selected by Wendy Red Star for Future Greats 2023, S’eiltin learned Chilkat robe weaving and skin-sewing from her mother, a master weaver. Her work Untitled (2017) is made from Merino wool felt, thread, metal grommets, snaps, and freshwater pearls. The piece draws inspiration from the devilfish (octopus) bag, which originated among the Cree and Métis Nations around the 1800s and spread via trade to the Tlingit. S’eiltin reimagines this form as a dark long coat with a dramatic collar, honoring Tlingit kinship and customs. Her practice blends traditional materials with innovation, reflecting Tlingit resilience. Her work has been exhibited at Museum of Arts and Design in New York (2022), Museum of Northwest Art in La Conner, WA (2018), and Missoula Art Museum, MT (2017). Wendy Red Star, an Apsáalooke multimedia artist based in Portland, OR, selected S’eiltin for Future Greats. Red Star's work was included in Speaking with Light: Contemporary Indigenous Photography at Amon Carter Museum of American Art, Fort Worth (2022).