Aan Yátx’u Sáani: Noble People of the Land
These three story boxes feature first-person narratives of identity, culture, and place in Lingít Aaní (southeast Alaska) and Tahltan Territory (northern British Columbia).
This story box website springs from three Ping Chong + Company collaborations in Alaska and British Columbia: Aan Yátx'u Sáani: Noble People of the Land in Juneau… The Juneau Voices Audio Walk… and When the Salmon Spoke, in Wrangell, Alaska and Telegraph Creek and Iskut, B.C.
Each project was developed through in-depth interviews with community members. The wealth of lived experience shared during those conversations was deep and wide-ranging. Only a small portion could be shared in the final productions. This story box website invites you to hear additional stories from these interviews. These are stories of families, of histories, of cultures, of struggle and resilience, of fights for civil rights and environmental justice, of deep connection to place, and of massive change over time.
Why are these called story boxes? Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian ancestors stored precious ceremonial items, regalia, and foods in cedar bentwood boxes. Often, these boxes were elaborately carved and painted. In recognition of these cedar bentwood boxes which Indigenous artists continue to create and carve, we name this collection the Story Box collection. One of the oldest Indigenous stories from this region tells us how Raven brought light to the earth; the story features three bentwood boxes in which the Grandfather kept the sun, the moon, and the stars. Raven released them from the boxes to be enjoyed by all. As Grandfather cherished the contents of his boxes, so do we as artist-facilitators value the storytellers and their stories celebrated on these pages. And, like Raven opening the boxes to share what’s within, this website shares the Story Box collection with you to shed light on the diverse peoples of Southeast Alaska and northern British Columbia, honoring their powerful connections to the land.
Gunalchéesh, haw’aa, meduh, and thank you to the many individuals who offered time and stories to the development of these projects.
For additional information on these projects, visit the about page above.
The three productions linked to this website were led variously by Frank Katasse (Tlingit), Lillian Petershoare (Tlingit), Tis Peterman (Tlingit/Tahltan), Kirby Muldoe (Tsimsian/Gitxsan), Heather Hardcastle, and Ryan Conarro. Ryan served as creative producer for each of these works.
Sarah Campen led design and editing of this website, along with Ryan and Lillian.
