The Art Of Tricking Tourists
no.sh...@here.com
The art of tricking tourists
Alaska-made art sells big with tourists, tempting some
shopkeepers to cover up the fact the art was made in China or
Bali.
By RILEY WOODFORD
THE JUNEAU EMPIRE
Half of Juneau's downtown tourist shops use cheap, foreign
knock-offs to mislead customers seeking Alaska-made Native art.
"Made in Indonesia" stickers are removed, covered and sometimes
replaced with "Made in Alaska" stickers. Non-Native artists are
presented as Native and imported products are passed off as
locally made, Empire reporters discovered during repeated visits
to 26 shops this summer.
"The misrepresentation is rampant," said Kathy Ellis, co-owner of
The Raven's Journey Gallery in downtown Juneau. "The stores in
this town are packed with made-in-Bali art. It's hurting local
artists, I think, big time. It makes anyone who deals with this
look bad."
Juneau artist and art collector Michael Hunter worries that
misrepresenting art could destroy the community's credibility
among travelers, who spend more than $60 million a year in Juneau
on souvenirs and tours.
Ketchikan and Vancouver, B.C., are working hard to establish
themselves as more reputable places for visitors to buy art, said
Hunter, who also manages The Big Picture gallery. He said Juneau
could become known as the place to take a tram ride or watch
whales, but not as a good place to buy art.
The deceptions also hurt Alaska artists, many of whom live in
cash-strapped villages where money earned by creating traditional
art puts food on the table and helps pays the bills.
"That has had some real impacts on individual artists who make a
living selling their own artwork," said Rose Atuk Fosdick, a
member of the new Bering Strait Inuit Cooperative. Fosdick said
deceptive practices in Southeast Alaska and Anchorage helped
motivate her and other artists in the Bering Strait region to
organize and address these problems.
"There are very few jobs available in small communities and
people have relied on their abilities to make arts and crafts,"
said Fosdick of Nome. "Money that people spend on those
non-authentic works is going to someone else, who is maybe mass
producing. They're benefiting from the fact that people want to
buy Alaska Native artwork, but that money does not go to the
people it should."
Visitor Jeanette Paktor-Mahler is among the many tourists who say
they want Alaska-made products.
"I want something that's going to say 'traditional Native
Alaska,' " she said while shopping on South Franklin Street this
month. "I'd like the material to be representative, and the
carving reflective of the culture a connection to the heritage,
culture and spirit of the Native Alaskan people."
For that reason, the temptation to pass off imitations as the
real thing can be irresistible.
Tricks of the trade
Earlier this month shop owner Norma Carandang pitched her wares
at the Billiken Gift Shop. She pointed out soapstone carvings
signed by Chupak, who she said is an Alaska Native artist. She
showed off a carved antler made by Bob Merry, who she said was a
local artist. She pointed out bowls she said were made by an
Anchorage Native carver named Larry.
In reality, Chupak is Chivly Chup, a Cambodian immigrant and not
an Alaska Native. Bob Merry lives in Anchorage and is not a
local. Larry is Larry Lynd, an Anchorage wholesale art dealer who
is not Native and who does not carve bowls.
Lynd wasn't surprised that a Juneau retailer had misrepresented
his work. He said it's happened before. The Anchorage wholesaler
operates a factory in Indonesia that produces Alaska-style art.
He sells Alaska-made and Native-made crafts as well, and said all
his merchandise made overseas is marked.
"It's stamped when we sell it, and I know sometimes they do take
the stickers off," Lynd said.
When Carandang was contacted later about her misrepresentations,
she denied ever claiming Larry Lynd was a carver. She said she
always tells people he's their vendor. Regarding Bob Merry's
status as a local, she said, "If they are from Anchorage, they
are local. They're Alaskan. It depends on how you define local."
She said she knows the artist Chup was born in Cambodia. She said
she tells people he is an Alaska Native because he lives in
Juneau. She admitted that could imply to visitors he is Tlingit.
At Frontier Gifts, a reporter saw two masks made by Lynd's
Indonesian factory bearing "Made In Alaska" stickers. Hours
later, the tags had been removed. Shop owner Naya Lazaro admitted
the masks were made overseas, but denied they were ever tagged
"Made In Alaska." When pressed, she admitted to painting over the
"Made in Indonesia" tags on some of the totems she sells.
In virtually every Juneau shop selling imported art and
souvenirs, reporters saw hundreds of items made overseas, but
displayed with the tags removed or covered. At Timberwolf,
Erlinda's Gift Shop, Treasures of Alaska and the Alaska Gift
Cache, the price stickers are placed directly over the "Made in
China" tag, or the label has been removed. At Northern Treasures,
each "Native" doll on a rack sports a tag telling the doll's
story, and each tag has a portion carefully torn off.
"Each article must reflect the country of origin. It must be
clearly marked on there in English," said Ken Koelsch, port
director of customs in Juneau. "If it doesn't, it's a violation
and susceptible to a fine."
When asked outright, most shopkeepers readily admit the products
are made in Asia. Some do not. Shopkeepers in Hickok's Trading
Company told a reporter they didn't know where any of their masks
and totems were made. A clerk at Billiken Gift Shop said the
totems came from Anchorage. A clerk at Frontier Gifts said
carvings in her shop came from "up north." The owners of all
three shops later acknowledged all the items were imported.
"The power is in what's not said. That's the whole conundrum in
this industry," said Mick Beasley, an Alaska Native artist and
co-owner of Beasley's Art Gallery. "It's hard when you look at a
collection of stuff five pieces with the Silver Hand (denoting
Alaska Native made) and five without, all mixed together. The
casual observer won't tell the difference between what's Native
and not Native. It's about what's not said."
Walking the line
When asked about Alaska Native-made carvings at Midnight Sun
Gifts, a clerk gestured to a mixed collection of Alaska-made and
imported pieces. When asked about specifics, she quickly
identified the imports.
Retailers and wholesalers are clever in their ability to imply
artists are Native without lying, or that products are
Alaska-made when they are not, said former investigator Steven
Rouse, who administered the state's Made in Alaska program from
1994 until last January.
Shopkeepers blur the distinction between imports and Native-made
pieces by putting the Alaska name on them and positioning
products together to benefit from the association, according to
Rouse.
"If it's not over the line, it's on the line," he said.
Rouse visited Juneau at least twice a year to make sure retailers
were not abusing the Made in Alaska mother bear and cub symbol.
When confronted, many shopkeepers claimed ignorance or
misunderstanding, he said.
"Maybe it was deliberate ignorance or plausible deniability," he
said. "I'd say about 10 percent of the shops out there don't care
much about any confusion."
Shopkeepers often hedge about the identity of one of Juneau's
most prolific Native-style artists, Chivly Chup, who signs his
work as Chupak.
Carol Carlson, owner of Goldmine Gifts, said shopkeepers have no
excuse for not knowing Chup is from Cambodia. She said Chup's
representative Kurt Tripp always has been up front with her about
Chup and includes a biography with each art piece that clearly
states Chup's history.
"If they want to make a sale, they will say he's Native. We've
lost a lot of sales because we tell them he's from Cambodia, even
if they love the piece." Carlson said. "People will lie to make
the sale."
At Northern Treasures, Chup's biography has been modified to
imply he's Eskimo. When asked, shopkeeper Dave Mende at Northern
Treasures said Chup is local, but said he didn't know anything
about him.
shopkeeper at Dockside Jewelers said Chupak is an Alaska Native
living in Juneau, then said, "Oh, Chupak might be a clan."
Another clerk said she thought he was Native, but might just be a
local resident.
"It's packaging and marketing. Is it ethical? No. Is it filling a
needed market niche because there is a lack of authentic carved
products? Yes," said Rouse, the former investigator.
"They do want a Native craft and there's only about 10 percent
available in the trade. The other 90 percent is either
Alaska-made or imported," said Lynd, the Anchorage wholesaler.
"We have both authentic and not, and they can usually tell by the
price," said Jared Williams, manager of Alaska Gift Cache. He
said with masks and totems, the difference is $150 compared to
$1,000. He's also had customers ask for an Alaska-made totem pole
for $30.
"It's not going to happen. So we try to have something for
everyone," he said.
Stealing the Silver Hand
Only artwork made by Alaska Native artists can bear the Silver
Hand seal. The intent is to guarantee consumers the authenticity
of Native-made artwork.
"I get complaints all the time," said Saunders McNeill, who
investigates reports of violations. Enforcement is the
responsibility of the Alaska State Council on the Arts, and
McNeill is the Native arts program director. Cases include
consumers' complaints of misrepresented art they bought, artists'
reports of counterfeiting and misuse of the Silver Hand seal.
McNeill is investigating a case in Juneau that involves someone
accused of fraudulently producing Native-style art and putting
the Silver Hand tag on it.
"He's getting Silver Hand (tags) that he shouldn't be having,"
she said. She wouldn't identify the individual, but added there's
been a second complaint in Juneau involving the same person.
McNeill just closed a case in Skagway and is looking at two more
in Ketchikan and one in Sitka. But investigating such cases is
just a small part of her job, and she believes a full-time Silver
Hand watchdog is needed.
The Alaska State Council on the Arts is revamping the whole
Silver Hand program and has quit supplying merchants with the
Silver Hand tags, she said.
"Because there have been so many cases of fraudulent use, we've
suspended the agent program," she said. "We no longer give tags
to representatives or agents, only directly to the artists."
The state arts council would like to see stiffer penalties for
violations, she said. Her office is studying models of different
laws to present to the state Legislature. She said she'd like to
see non-Native artwork labeled as such, something first proposed
40 years ago.
"They tried to do that in the original 1961 statutes, but there
was a huge outcry. That was seen as negative marketing and the
statutes were basically watered down," she said. "We're looking
at rewriting the statutes."
Alaska Native artist Mick Beasley strongly agrees that would
help.
"It shouldn't be Natives having to identify their stuff. The
responsibility should lie on the non-Native producer. Anything
that is non-Native-produced ought to make the declaration," he
said. "And if they don't there should be hefty fines."
Fosdick of the Bering Strait Inuit Cooperative said the Silver
Hand program is on the right track, but needs more support.
"It can be a solution. It's the responsibility of the artists and
shopkeepers to use the Silver Hand program," she said. "Educating
the public would also be good and could be a part of the Silver
Hand program getting the word out that quality Alaska Native
artwork is available."
Shop owners are frustrated by deceptive practices and would like
to see the industry cleaned up. Jerry Reinwand, co-owner of
Alaska Peddler, which specializes in Alaska-made products, said a
few years ago he dropped a product line allegedly made in Juneau
when he found evidence that convinced him otherwise.
"I wasn't going to put anything out there that's questionable,"
Reinwand said.
Cleaning up their act
Rouse said the misrepresentation of art today is not as bad as it
was six years ago, when he first took over the Made in Alaska
program.
"As a region, Southeast Alaska was by far the most problematic,"
he said.
He said originally Ketchikan was the most egregious offender,
with retailers routinely tagging imports as Made in Alaska. A
cooperative effort by his program and Made in Alaska product
dealers turned the situation around. He said although it's not
perfect, Creek Street in Ketchikan is now one of the state's
premier show places for authentic Alaska art.
Artist Michael Hunter said he hopes the community of merchants in
Juneau will police themselves to protect the town's reputation.
He thinks Juneau would benefit from the Juneau Chamber of
Commerce and the Juneau Convention and Visitors Bureau policing
shops. A newsletter could watchdog violators.
He said deceptive practices, even by a few shops, could hurt the
reputation of the entire Juneau business community.
"People may not pay attention here, but they sure do back in New
England," Hunter said. "And they're planning their vacations."
CBenn92586
>presented as Native and imported products are passed off as
>locally made, Empire reporters discovered during repeated visits
>to 26 shops this summer.
I don't see why this is a problem. The "native" artisits are'nt really anyway.
Everybody knows that the Alaskan "natives" come from someplace else, many
believe from Asia.
This being the case then Asian goods can be considered to be real authentic
native art. Easy.
"I want to drive the Zamboni, I want to drive the Zamboni. . . yes I do"
Margarita Lacabe
>> Non-Native artists are
>>presented as Native and imported products are passed off as
>>locally made, Empire reporters discovered during repeated visits
>>to 26 shops this summer.
> I don't see why this is a problem. The "native" artisits are'nt really anyway.
> Everybody knows that the Alaskan "natives" come from someplace else, many
> believe from Asia.
> This being the case then Asian goods can be considered to be real authentic
> native art. Easy.
You are completely right. But let's take it further. It seems that
paleoanthropological evidence points to Africa as the place of origin for
mankind (about 5 million years ago). So ultimately, we are all Africans,
so any art, made anywhere by anone can be considered to be made by
Africans. ;)
--
Margarita Lacabe - ma...@lacabe.com - http://www.lacabe.com/marga/
____________________________________________________________________________
"Some people say that cats are sneaky, evil, and cruel.
True, and they have many other fine qualities as well."
Missy Dizick
Paul
warned of this and other scams by their trusty TAs, it shouldn't be a
problem.
<no.sh...@here.com> wrote in message
news:6bobssggv52b3o58l...@4ax.com...
Dennis P. Harris
no.sh...@here.com wrote:
> Web posted Sunday, September 17, 2000
To be fair to the honest shops, the Juneau Empire story,
reprinted in today's paper because a production error cut the
last 2/3 of the story from the Sunday print edition, also carried
the following sidebar:
"Honest shops
The focus of the investigation was misrepresentation of art.
Clerks in the following shops that sell hand-crafted art were
quick to point out exactly what merchandise was imported and
which was Alaska-made. They knew about their products and the
artists and were completely candid:
Alaska Peddler, Goldmine Gifts, Alaska Gift Cache, The Raven's
Journey, Beasley's Art Gallery, Fireweed Gifts, Totemic
Treasures, Moose on the Loose, Eskimos and Butterflies, George's
Jewelry and Gifts, Mt. Juneau Trading Post, Latitude 58,
Portfolio Arts and Rainsong Gallery. Not all downtown shops were
visited."
I thought that r.t.c. readers would want to know that there are
indeed some honest shops in Juneau.
Juneau, by the way, is the only Alaskan port where, with one
exception, shop owners have refused to participate in the
so-called "port lectures" where the "lecturers" steer passengers
to "approved" stores that have paid a fee to be mentioned in the
"lectures". This practice has been under investigation by the
Alaska Attorney General's office for quite some time.
You might want to keep that in mind when deciding which port
should get your shopping dollars.
=============================================================
Give Juneau residents a break! If you *must* visit on
a cruise ship, book a trip arriving any day but Saturday!
Dennis P. Harris NO_SPAM_T...@gci.net
http://www.ejuneau.net