Alaska residents, artists and birders from the Lower 48 and beyond have been keeping tabs on the white raven through a growing Facebook group. The Anchorage White Raven Spottings page was created in October and has since accumulated more than 13,000 members.
The group has a daily stream of posts, usually dozens a day, including photos and videos of the bird around Anchorage and artwork from local painters, creators and makers across the state.
After retiring from the National Park Service, Adrienne Fleek never thought she would have a side job selling her creations for her business, L’ook Beadwork. She recently created a white raven bolo tie, carved from bone and surrounded by black beadwork that she shared in the Facebook group.
Fleek says she was “really fortunate” to see the bird when she was in Anchorage over Thanksgiving weekend. Her great aunt Marie Ackerman wrote a book, called Tlingit Stories, which included the White Raven.
“As a Tlingit person, the idea of getting to see a white raven in person is magical,” she said. “I’m really impacted by the connections and the possibility the raven has brought to the area.”
During the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, Fleek notes a boom of Alaska Native artists selling their work through social media. She made some amazing connections during a time of isolation, and feels similar to how the white raven is bringing folks together.
“When you go on Facebook it’s all positivity … Is he a trickster? Is he just laughing at all of us?” Fleek said. “Seeing all the different pictures of French fries and cigarettes is a lot of fun … These relatives of mine are so smart.”
Danielle Pungowiyi of Alaskan ARTventures by Dani, a Siberian Yupik artist in Anchorage, created polymer clay earrings inspired by the white raven. Pungowiyi says she dabbles in all kinds of artwork, but has primarily worked with clay for the past year. She mainly creates Alaska Native-themed art, like maktak cutting boards from modeling clay and forget-me-not qaspeqs.
She says that the Facebook group helped her find the bird so that she could see the leucistic raven in person. Pungowiyi saw the bird flying around near Arctic Boulevard and 27th Avenue.
“I found another artist who makes clay cutters on Etsy and asked her to make me a custom raven cutter,” Pungowiyi said. “I was making just black raven earrings before, until I heard about the white raven that’s been hanging around town lately and I noticed the raven wasn’t a pure white color, which is why I used a clay called pearl to create the earrings.”
Meleia Allen, owner and creator of Lost Wilderness Boutique, shared clay earrings that she made in the Facebook group featuring the white raven.
“I decided to put the blue-eyed white raven in the sea of black ravens on a pair of my Xtratuf-style boot clay earrings,” Allen said. “Then I posted a picture of the earrings on the Facebook group… Everyone in that group is always so supportive and kind.”
Artist Cinnamon Dockham is the featured artist for December at Aurora Fine Art Gallery, where more of her work, and the white raven, have been seen. Dockham has challenged herself for years to paint white animals in the snow, from polar bears to arctic foxes. She saw the white raven as an opportunity to dive into a favorite subject.
“I originally intended to make a stylized Yin Yang-kind of picture with the white raven and a black one, but it morphed into this instead,” she said. “Maybe I’ll try that again over the holidays.”
Her piece, “Date Night,” is a 24×24 canvas with acrylic paint, featuring the white raven and a fellow bird sharing some french fries. Dockham said she wanted to highlight the city birds in downtown Anchorage, which is why fast food, litter and street lights are in the scene.
“In the painting, I wanted to show that it is the same as any other raven,” Dockham said. “They are all so smart, they can make an exciting party out of the most mundane everyday activities.”
Artist Laurel Carnahan shared her piece, “Forged in Fire,” in the Facebook group — featuring handmade silk-paper collage with gold and copper leaf. The center is carved bone Carnahan purchased from other artists.
“The ravens actually, with the exception of a little guy up top, have many, many layers,” Carnahan said. “So I’m cutting different colors, some of them translucent, and then layering them up to get those effects.”
A lot of what inspired Carnahan about the raven is that “he’s really not white.” She says the natural color of silk fiber is gold and creamy.
Carnahan says being Native American and growing up in Alaska, she has heard different stories about raven her whole life. Some say he was scorched by the sun, some say it was soot that turned him black, Carnahan said.
“There are stories about white raven and how significant and important he is throughout the United States among Native American people,” she said. “It’s similar to the white buffalo, in that it’s supposed to indicate a change coming.”
“Not bad or good, just change,” Carnahan added.
Sam Davenport is a writer residing in Anchorage. She's a leo and a plant-person, and loves spending quality time with her dog, Aspen. She is a Real Housewives fan and has been called a Bravo historian.
