Sven Haakanson is an anthropologist and artist born and raised in the Alutiiq village of Old Harbor, Alaska. He completed his doctorate in anthropology at Harvard University where he studied rare Alutiiq objects. In addition to ceremonial masks, he creates functional objects to explore and express his Alutiiq heritage.

Haakanson was named a MacArthur Fellow in 2007 and the “World’s Sexiest Anthropologist” by People magazine.

He is the former executive director of the Alutiiq Museum & Archeological Repository. As of 2023, he was serving as chair of the University of Washington Anthropology Department.