The late Clarissa Rizal (Hudson) is among the most important Tlingit textile artists of the 20th and 21st centuries. A student of the great Jennie Thlunaut (Tlingit, 1891-1986) and a member of the T’akdeintaan Clan (Raven/ Black-Legged Kittiwake), Rizal was a multidisciplinary artist and educator who was a major force in the preservation of Chilkat and Ravenstail weaving. In addition to her weaving work, Rizal also created paintings, music, sculpture, and button blankets. She was also an author and teacher [1]. Her daughters, Lily Hope and Ursula Hudson, continue to work in weaving and textiles and are passing that knowledge on to future generations.

Button blankets are created using an appliqué technique in which crest images are cut out of a wool or felt fabric and overlaid onto a solid ground, with cloth borders (often the same colour as the crest) and mother-of-pearl buttons framing the blanket on three sides. This is what gives the regalia its name. The colours most often used are red and dark blue (or black). This beautiful button blanket captures the movement and excitement of a salmon run in the southeastern Alaskan summer. In a play on customary form, Rizal has illustrated a winding river, thick with salmon rendered in negative space and alluding to formline elements. The river is outlined in mother-of-pearl buttons and, in a fun, contemporary twist, the border features mother-of-pearl buttons arranged in a pattern reminiscent of waves or a cast fishing line, with six antique fishing lures on each side. The light rattling of the antique fishing lures creates a percussive aspect when the blanket is danced and adds to the rich narrative that Rizal has created with this regalia.

Rizal commented on the meaning of this blanket:

When we were kids fishing with our mother at Fish Creek near Juneau, Alaska, she recalled a memory from her childhood. As she looked upon the shallow creek with a few salmon running upstream, she said: In the olden days there were fish so thick we could walk across their backs to the other side. This is the name and meaning of this button robe.

The entire time I worked on this robe, I thought of my father and my two older brothers who all were commercial fishermen and fished for themselves, family, friends, and community. And of course, I thought of my mother, whose statement she made over 50 years ago was still remembered by her eldest daughter who just had to name a robe in honor of her childhood recollection. Here’s to my Mom, Dad, Brothers, and all who love salmon fishing! [2]

1. About Clarissa. https://clarissarizal.com/about/. Accessed 21 August 2025.

2. Stonington Gallery. “River Robe.” https://stoningtongallery.com/artwork/the-river-robe/. Accessed 21 August 2025.

Christopher W. Smith