{"id":70686,"date":"2023-06-29T01:00:50","date_gmt":"2023-06-29T08:00:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hollandamerica.com\/blog\/?p=70686"},"modified":"2024-06-03T13:58:53","modified_gmt":"2024-06-03T20:58:53","slug":"meet-artist-rico-worl","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hollandamerica.com\/blog\/whats-new\/meet-artist-rico-worl\/","title":{"rendered":"Meet Rico Worl, an Alaska Native Artist"},"content":{"rendered":"

When you embark on an Alaska cruise<\/a> with Holland America Line<\/a> later this summer, you\u2019ll notice beautiful and intricate artwork on menus and other items representing stories and traditions of the indigenous people of the Great Land. The creator of these beautiful works of art is Rico Lan\u00e1at\u2019<\/em> Worl, a Tlingit and Athabascan social designer and artist. He has artfully combined his learnings of anthropology with the teachings of his culture and community.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Growing up in Juneau<\/a> and witnessing the beauty of Alaska firsthand, Rico is grateful for the traditions and stories that have been shared through the years, fueling his artwork so he, too, can be a messenger for future generations.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne role that I\u2019ve always felt has been important to me is being able to represent the identity of my tribe and the people that raised me,\u201d he said. \u201cHolland America reached out and wanted to be able to represent local voices here, and that was perfectly in line with what I want to do, too.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>

\"View<\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div>

The passion for art runs deep for Rico and his family, including his sister, Crystal Kaakeey\u00e1a Worl. In fact, the mural in the background of the featured image above was created by Crystal, and you can see it as you disembark at the port in Juneau.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

\"View<\/span><\/div>

Rico’s artwork appears in blue in the sample material above.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>

When it comes to Rico\u2019s art you\u2019ll notice a lot of wildlife. They\u2019re central to many of the stories passed on from the ancestors of Alaska Natives, recognizing they have shared the land with them for thousands of years. The beautiful creatures of Alaska are also one of the reasons many people travel there.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe wildlife here… we\u2019ve lived alongside them, and they\u2019ve helped sustain our communities. A lot of times that\u2019s the relationship we\u2019re representing in the artwork. Each relationship is intricate and it\u2019s a story all its own.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>

Rico explained that the Tlingit people make up a society divided in two halves, represented by the eagle and the raven. His mother\u2019s side is represented by the raven. Within each side you have clans, and Rico\u2019s is represented by the sockeye. That\u2019s why you\u2019ll often see the raven and sockeye incorporated in his regalia because he and his art share those stories. Though he loves both creatures, his favorite is the raven.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey are very playful, and they\u2019ll play jokes on you. The raven is a trickster character. They\u2019ll tease your dogs and get really creative. I\u2019ve always tried to emulate that creativity and play in my career.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s that playfulness and creativity that inspired him to establish his own company \u2013 appropriately named the Trickster Company \u2013 after the raven. You\u2019ll also find the spirit of both the raven and sockeye in some of the artwork introduced on board.<\/p>\n

Being raised in both the Tlingit and Athabascan tribes \u2013 and learning about the arts and culture of each one \u2013 have uplifted Rico and given him strength throughout the years. It has helped him express the beauty of the culture through his own artwork, which he hopes empowers the next generation.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like my role is to be a good ancestor for the next generation. To continue to uphold the legacy of the art but also make its place in the modern world. I\u2019m hoping people see these designs and want to know more. There\u2019s a rich history to our art, and there\u2019s a rich culture behind where they come from. I\u2019m hoping it\u2019s a little gateway for passengers to get interested in Alaska Native art.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

In addition to seeing some of Rico\u2019s artwork on board, you can also find his art on display at the Sealaska Heritage Institute in Juneau.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":1984,"featured_media":70863,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[48,40],"tags":[4232,4192],"class_list":["post-70686","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured-whats-new","category-whats-new","tag-alaska","tag-education"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hollandamerica.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70686","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hollandamerica.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hollandamerica.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hollandamerica.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1984"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hollandamerica.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=70686"}],"version-history":[{"count":26,"href":"https:\/\/www.hollandamerica.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70686\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":81037,"href":"https:\/\/www.hollandamerica.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70686\/revisions\/81037"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hollandamerica.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/70863"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hollandamerica.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=70686"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hollandamerica.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=70686"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hollandamerica.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=70686"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}