Frank Tuttle, Untitled

Frank Tuttle (b.1957) holds a Bachelor’s of Fine Arts degree from California State University, Humboldt (now Humboldt State University). A Native Californian, Tuttle has devoted much of his life to his family and acquiring traditional manufacturing techniques of his people that have been rarely used or forgotten. As a modern painter, he is continually searching for new ways to express his understanding the power of the Creation. Tuttle experiments with imagery and materials to further explore the meanings of tradition in contemporary social and artistic contexts. As a Native art historian, he has written, “I enjoy a particular thrill in being able to contrast and compare fragments of the old and new order. There exists a continuum of the tradition of the vision quest in which the new visions, as works of art, are informed by both Indian traditions and the modern art traditions.”

Tuttle’s work searches for the essence of the traditions and ceremonies of Native people from Northern and Central California. His images are visual reminders of ancestral memories, filled with joy and celebration, thanks and prayers. Tuttle’s personal memory intersects with communal memory. As a basketweaver and dancer, he has used his traditional views to conjure images true to his people’s memory. Tuttle has exhibited at the Santa Rosa Junior College Gallery, the Richmond Art Center in Richmond, California, and at the Memorial Union and Gorman Museum, found on the campus of UC Davis.