Iñupiat Art Exhibition
NANA
Information

The passage of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA) by Congress in 1971 divided Alaska into twelve regions, transferring ownership of more than 44 million acres to newly established, for-profit corporations led by Native Alaskan shareholders. The NANA region encompasses eleven villages in northwest Alaska, the traditional lands of the Iñupiat people. More than 15,000 Iñupiat shareholders own NANA’s subsidiary businesses in fields including engineering and construction, facilities management, and information technology services. The income from these businesses provides shareholders with the support to continue the traditional subsistence lifestyle that their ancestors have practiced for thousands of years.

In 2019, one of these businesses relocated to a new, 70,000 square foot headquarters building in Herndon, Virginia. A traditional saying describes the Iñupiat people as “walking in two worlds with one spirit.” NANA leadership wanted the headquarters building to reflect this idea by merging the realms of Iñupiat heritage and the innovative technologies of the shareholders’ businesses.

Studio Loutsis initially joined the project to design bespoke environmental graphics and a gallery of Iñupiat art and artifacts. However, the scope soon grew: as we delved into the art in preparation for designing the planned gallery space we were able to fully appreciate the collection’s depth and breadth. This led us to a bold proposal: what if we curated several exhibitions throughout the building, allowing for multiple visitor encounters with the objects, rather than restrict the gallery experience to one space? The client fully endorsed this proposal as supporting their project goals: making the space more engaging for guests and celebrating Iñupiat heritage.

In designing the exhibitions, Studio Loutsis worked closely with Iñupiat advisors on object selection, display, and context. Our team conducted the research and content development, curated the artwork, and grouped the objects into three main themes: “Our People,” “Our Heritage,” and “Our Impact.” Custom casework, lighting, mounts, labels, and interpretive materials all met—or exceeded—best practices across the field of museum exhibitions, ensuring that the objects were protected yet accessible for all audiences, and transforming a variety of public spaces into gallery environments. In all three themes, the Studio Loutsis team worked with our advisors to incorporate contemporary photography and video to create context for the artifacts. This strategy not only helped animate the objects, but it also allowed visitors to the building, located thousands of miles from the NANA region, a glimpse into Iñupiat life today. 

We created ten site-specific environmental installations for locations we identified throughout the building, working closely with fabricators in a wide range of materials, including corrugated aluminum, wood (ash and oak), metal, slate, and cast concrete. In each case, the bespoke installations featured images related to Iñupiat culture: several directly referenced art objects in the exhibitions; other sources of inspiration included satellite maps of the eleven northwest Alaska villages and text from core Iñupiat teachings. With these pieces, we expanded the exhibition themes into tertiary spaces surrounding the exhibition, using the installations’ large scale and unexpected materials to act as an abstract extension of Iñupiat heritage.

Year
2020
Sector
Corporate
Arts
Design
Services
Content
Digital
Environments
Exhibitions
Strategy

CREATIVE DIRECTION

Studio Loutsis

CONTENT DEVELOPMENT

Studio Loutsis

CURATOR

Studio Loutsis

COPYWRITING

Tara Young

FABRICATOR, SIGNAGE

Drive 21

FABRICATOR, GRAPHICS

Drive 21


FABRICATOR, EXHIBITION

Visual Graphics Systems

FABRICATOR, CONCRETE

Fine Concrete

FRAMING SYSTEM

Paint Box, NYC

IMAGERY

Courtest of Client

VIDEO

Courtesy of Client


STUDIO LOUTSIS

Bryan Alcorn

Dominic Borgia

Inva Cota

Kellie Konapelsky

Taylor Loutsis

Rachel Quan

Maxwell Smith

Tara Young

Jess Zang

Typography
Website
View
Paper
PRESS
Release
No items found.

Credits

Creative Direction
Taylor Loutsis
Wordmark
Greg Gazdowicz
Strategy
Ian Reagan
Copywriter
Tara Young
Graphic Design
Taylor Loutsis
Angus Plunkett
Andrew Burgess
Ryan Stewart
Web Development
Ben Jackson, Studio Jvckson
Word Production
Shoeb Lakhi
Print Production
Publicide
Typography
Neue Haas Grotesk, Display Pro, 65 Medium
Bespoke packaging system for L'Entrata featured on World Brand Design Society.
AN Interior stepped out in Brooklyn to host a small invite-only party, hosted by Studio Loutsis in its bespoke workspace in Gowanus.
Put a Ring on It a Silver Ring Seals the Deal in Studio Loutsis Identity for Common Bond 2022
BRC Imagination Arts and Studio Loutsis Share Involvement with USA Pavilion for the World Expo 2025 Osaka
Black Asteroid shares a mesmerizing new single, ‘Ashes and Dust feat. ACTORS’, and announces a sophomore album, ‘Infinite Darkness’, which will be released via Artoffact Records +Track Premiere
Wayfinding and Signage System for Brown University’s Lindemann Performing Arts Center
Trahan Architects Envisions Two-Winged USA Pavilion for Expo 2025 Osaka
Trahan Architects designs USA pavilion with suspended cube for Expo 2025 Osaka
Trahan Architects Unveils Design for USA Pavilion at Expo 2025 Osaka
Trahan Architects releases design for USA Pavilion at 2025 Expo Osaka
The quiet American: US reveals pavilion design for World Expo 2025
Future Projects was awarded AN's 2023 Best of Design Award in Interior - Workspace for the Studio Loutsis office.
REX creates "holy grail" combination of performance spaces in Providence.
Highlighting arts teaching, scholarship and performance.