Thomas Stream Sold at Auction Prices

b. 1941 -

Aleut artist Thomas Stream was born in Kodiak, AK in 1941. During the war, his family moved to Washington State, settling in Seattle in 1945. After graduating in 1960, he volunteered for the draft and entered the Military, serving as a combat engineer. He re-enlisted in 1962 and served in Korea, being honorably discharged in 1965. After the military, he worked in the food processing business. In 1971, he attended Seattle Central Community College and studied graphic arts and illustration. Graduating in 1974 with a degree in advertising arts, he then entered Cornish School of Allied Arts in Seattle and studied fine arts; graduating in 1976.

Thomas Stream’s paintings pay homage to his Aleut ancestors and their traditions. He began the Aleutian Painting series in 1996, an exploration of natural forms, vivid colors and delicate patterns. This series is encapsulated by the phrase, “We are still here,” a simple—yet poignant and powerful—statement that sums up Stream’s outlook on his heritage and his artwork. The Aleutian Islands are an archipelago of islands which extend deeply into the North Pacific. To their north lies the Bering Sea. The land is made up of primarily rock and sand with little vegetation. The Aleut have lived on Alaska’s Aleutian Islands for thousands of years.

The vivacious animals in Stream’s paintings wear traditional Aleutian hunting hats. These represent nobility and status within Aleut society. The visors have been made out of steam-bent driftwood for millennia. The hats were seamed up the back with gut and adorned with carved ivory, sea lion whiskers, bird feathers and Russian trade beads. Older hats from the 18th and nineteenth century are some of the rarest artifacts from the pre-contact period. The Aleuts spent a large part of their time at sea in kayaks, and the shape of the visor echoes the Aleutian kayaks. They served both to shade the hunter’s face in his kayak and to spiritually connect the hunter to his prey. In Stream’s iconography these visors celebrate the individual spirit of each animal, while connecting them to the Aleut people, who share the same environment.

Stream also uses color and line to represent his love and respect for his heritage. Stream’s paintings make use of geometric designs and pointillist dots. At first glance, these dots and lines simply add depth to a jay’s wing or an orca’s tail. However, these spiraling forms are cultural techniques to visualize time and space—the addition of which lend a longevity and immortality to their subjects.

“The images illustrate humility and honor to a unique group of people. I utilize the creatures of the sky, sea, and earth to depict the wonderful wittiness, strength, playfulness, sensitivity, power and sorrow of the Aleuts and their environment.” —Thomas Stream

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