YOUNGSTOWN Art helps officer share heritage

George Twok Aden Ahgupuk was nationally known for his scenes of Alaska.
By PATRICIA MEADE
VINDICATOR CRIME REPORTER
YOUNGSTOWN -- Detective Sgt. Dave Sweeney drolly tells those with pen in hand that the Web site for his maternal grandfather,a famous Eskimo artist, is Ahgupuk.com -- "common spelling."
George Twok Aden Ahgupuk was born in 1911 in the Inupiat village of Shishmaref. He died at his Alaska home in 2001, leaving a legacy of artwork nationwide that Sweeney has been acquiring from private collectors to share with his family.
"He never kept a catalog, so I have no idea how many pieces are out there," said Sweeney, who joined the Youngstown Police Department in 1989. "We get e-mails from all over; some of his artwork is being donated back."
Missionaries changed Twok Aden's name to George Ahgupuk, thinking George sounded Christian and Ahgupuk sounded more Eskimo than Aden, Sweeney said with a chuckle. Growing up, Ahgupuk learned to hunt and fish to survive.
Began in hospital
His artistic career began in 1934, during a lengthy hospital stay to treat an infection that spread from a broken leg that hadn't mended properly.
Sweeney said his grandfather's first artwork showed up on the only paper available to him in the hospital, toilet paper. Once back home, he did pen-and-ink drawings on dried animal skins -- seal, caribou, reindeer and moose.
In 1937, a feature in The New York Times launched Ahgupuk's career, and he ventured into paints. Encouraged by renowned artist Rockwell Kent, Ahgupuk became an illustrator for books and Christmas cards.
"He was able to spread what Alaska was all about to the lower 48 states," Sweeney said. "When he got famous, he started signing his last name only."
The artwork, which includes men in kayaks, hunting scenes and Alaska's magnificent mountains, can be found at the Smithsonian Institution and museums in California, Seattle and Alaska.
Sweeney's parents, James and Unaliina (nicknamed "Tony") met in Anchorage when James, originally from Youngstown, was stationed at Elmendorf Air Force Base in the 1960s. They eventually settled here.
Going to visit
Sweeney, his mother, and his sister, Kara, spent summers in Alaska after school let out. Sweeney's mother died five years ago, and she was taken to Alaska for burial.
"We got to enjoy Alaska and watch him draw his beautiful artwork in the basement studio," Sweeney said of his summers in Alaska. "He would encourage us to draw. I went to Youngstown State University to study studio art, but I focused on law enforcement."
This month, Sweeney and his wife, Chris, traveled to the Anchorage Museum of History and Art for the opening of a show that features the works of many Alaskan artists, including roughly 25 done by Ahgupuk. The Sweeneys loaned the museum six original Ahgupuk pieces, which include ink drawings on reindeer skin.
Educating kids
Chris Sweeney said her husband enjoys speaking to schoolkids, explaining Inupiat Eskimo life. He takes along some of his grandfather's artwork, carved ivory and photos of relatives in traditional Eskimo clothing.
"The kids are really into the presentation, and what's even better is, they get a positive view of a police officer, too," she said. "We've run into kids at football games, and they come up to Dave and say, 'You're that Eskimo cop who came to my school and told us about Alaska.' It's cute."
meade@vindy.com