Electronic Exhibits

The Girl Who Married the Moon.
Painting by Marina Thomas.

Students in two Kodiak High School classes explored links between art and storytelling through this classic Alutiiq story.  Working with Alutiiq artist Lena Amason and art teacher Bonnie Dillard, they developed characters and scenes from the Alutiiq legend The Girl Who Married the Moon for an animated film in the Alutiiq Museum's PatRiitat P’tasqat - Moving Pictures Project.  Alf Pryor of Dead Humpy Photography produced the animation with inspiration from student artwork, voice acting by Kodiak youth, and Alutiiq vocabulary. Technology students documented the artistic process under the direction of teacher Matt Beiber, creating a second film, a project documentary.

With Generous Support From

Kodiak Island Borough School District
First Nations Development Institute – Native Youth and Culture Fund

The Story

Adapted from a Alutiiq story collected on Kodiak in 1903, The Girl Who Married the Moon tells of a girl who fall in love with the moon. 

Synopsis: According to Alutiiq legend, the moon is a man who wears a different mask every night. The girl discovers this secret when she is carried to the sky world to become the moon's bride. At first, she is lonely. Her husband works every night and sleeps in the day, leaving her bored. In her new home there are no friends, just star people. These men have a single eye in the center of their foreheads and peer down to earth through the cloud. One day the girl discovers her husband's masks, hidden in a special store house. She places one of the beautiful carvings against her face and its sticks! She cannot remove it. When the moon returns, he comforts his wife and invites her to work with him lighting the night sky, a job they have done together since.

Student Artwork

World

      

                                      

Painting by Bryan Fruto

Painting by Akiyo Kishimoto

 

Student Artwork

Girl

 

Painting by Marina Thomas

Drawing by Marina Thomas.

Moon

 

Painting by Charles Barker

Painting by Emerald Blakeslee

Moon Man

 

Painting by Roger Estelle

Drawing by Roger Estelle

Drawing by Kaylee Armstrong

Stars

Painting by Carina Stihl	Painting by Kaylee Armstrong
Painting by Carina Stihl

Cloud

Painting by Molly Jones

Moon's House

Painting by Esther Anderson	Painting by Esther Anderson
Painting by Allie Bateman

Moon Masks

 

Drawing by Josh Knox

Painting by Josh Knox

Backgrounds

Painting by Emerald Blakeslee	Painting by Emerald Blakeslee
Painting by Truby Roberson	Painting by Charles Barker
Drawing by Melanie Valenzuela

Video

Credits

Adapted From

The Girl Who Married the Moon, Tales from Kodiak Island, collected and published by F.A. Golder, 1903, Journal of American Folklore 16(60):16-31.

Quyanaasinaq – We Thank You Most Sincerely

Special thanks to our Alutiiq Elders, Florence Pestrikoff, Nick Alokli, Mary Haakanson, and Susan Malutin, for their assistance in developing the Alutiiq language script for PatRiitat P’tasqat.