Photo description: 2023 Distinguished Artist Sainteen Anna Brown Ehlers’s “Dawn of the Love Birds” blanket, won best of show in Sealaska Heritage Institute’s 2008 Celebration.

ANCHORAGE (ALASKA) – Nominations are open for the 2025 Rasmuson Foundation Distinguished Artist Award. One artist will be selected to receive $50,000 recognizing their contribution and dedication to the arts in Alaska.

“The arts are special and play a critical role in preserving culture, passing along traditions, and just making the world a more interesting and better place,” said Chris Perez, Vice President of Programs at Rasmuson Foundation. “This award is an acknowledgment and recognition for Alaskans who have dedicated their lives to creating art. It’s essentially the Hall of Fame of Alaska artists.”     

The award is for an Alaskan who, after 20 years of practicing art at the highest level, continues to produce works and whose creative accomplishments promise a future of artistic excellence. The public is invited to learn about past recipients, review award eligibility, and nominate artists online at Rasmuson.org. The nomination period closes on March 14. An Alaska-based panel of artists and art experts will assist in the selection process, with the award expected to be announced in August.

Past recipients include Rie Muñoz, known for her iconic style and whimsical approach to illustrating community moments across Alaska, and Nathan Jackson, a master of Tlingit wood carving and metalsmith who is recognized as a National Endowment for the Arts National Heritage Fellow.

The most recent Distinguished Artist is culture bearer and Chilkat weaver Sainteen Anna Brown Ehlers from Juneau, also a National Heritage Fellow. A gallery of past recipients is viewable on our website.

Rasmuson Foundation has selected 20 Distinguished Artists since 2004 and awarded more than $121 million to lift the arts, culture, and humanities across the state through this award, the Individual Artist Awards program, and core grantmaking programs such as Tier 1, Community Support, and Legacy grants. In 2024, more than $4 million was awarded to projects and programs supporting the arts, culture, and humanities.