Garrett Iĝayux̂ Pletnikoff and Hannah Atsaq Zimmerman are taking what they learned from a nearly-three month intensive of tanning, crafting and creating with reindeer in Norway earlier this spring, and bringing it back to their community on St. Paul island.
The duo make up Tukuuludaa, a combination of their last names — Zimmerman is “carpenter” in German, Pletnikoff is “carpenter” in Russian. Tukuuludaa is the first collaboration of its kind, a Pribilof Islands-based tannery, design studio and educational center.
When Zimmerman moved to St. Paul, she learned that there was no knowledge or culture involving reindeer skins, pelts and antlers. People would often shoot the reindeer, take the meat and throw the rest away.
“I was thinking about the history of the reindeer and the history of the Saami in Alaska and thinking, ‘How can we rebuild this knowledge, how can we rebuild this culture?’ Even if reindeer handicraft is not Indigenously developed on St. Paul Island, we have this resource that was put there … From an ecological perspective how can we prevent trash and get more people to use this resource, and what can we do?” Zimmerman said.
Reindeer are not indigenous to Alaska and were introduced in the late 1800s, with herds across the Seward Peninsula, as well as on St. Lawrence Island, the Pribilof Islands and some of the Aleutian Islands.
“We just got it 100 years ago, so of course there isn’t a culture behind it, there isn’t culture around it,” Pletnikoff said.
Zimmerman has her reindeer tanning license in Norway, and Pletnikoff received his reindeer tanning certification and became the first certified Unangan reindeer tanner. His great-grandfather, John Fraitis Jr., a Chamorro descendant on St. Paul was appointed by the U.S. government on the island to be the designated reindeer herder.
“This was before World War II, and evacuation happened on St. Paul island, and so we lost it,” he said. “I think the government pretty much eradicated the reindeer species on the island … when the Unangan people got back to the Pribilof Islands, there weren’t so many reindeer anymore.”
Community members got wind of their Norway trip and since then, the reaction has been overwhelmingly positive. Now, people are messaging Pletnikoff and tagging Tukuuludaa on Facebook, asking what to do with the skins and other parts of the reindeer.
Tukuuludaa is working on a reindeer and seal culture camp this summer. Pletnikoff also offers a class twice a week, on Tuesdays and Thursdays, where he teaches people how to sew, and encourages anyone to come in to learn.
“We have 18,000 reindeer in Alaska, and people are buying reindeer hides from Sweden and shipping them to Alaska,” Zimmerman said. “It’s so bad for the planet and so wasteful … now Garrett knows how to take a reindeer and turn it into leather, and different kinds.”
Tukuuludaa encourages other islands to reach out so they can begin building a network of Bering Sea and Strait island hunters, artists and tanners, and share the knowledge they have — with the ultimate goal of developing both local and regional economies.
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.
