Marie Laws is Tlingit, Raven from the T'akdeintaan clan. Her Tlingit name is L'Daanaat. Marie has had formal art training in painting, sculpture, clay, stone, weaving and wood carving. She has demonstrated and interpreted Northwest Coast art forms at the Southeast Alaska Indian Cultural Center where she was involved in the design and weaving of two ceremonial robes.

Recently Marie was an instructor in the Alaska State Council on the Arts Master/Apprentice Program. Marie has attended symposiums and workshops in New Zealand and throughout the Pacific Northwest. Her works in weaving, carving and paper-making have been exhibited in New Zealand as wellas in many venues throughout the U.S. and Alaska.

"Art in many forms has been a lifelong pursuit of mine," wrote Marie Laws. "Beginning as a child, I was inspired by my mother, who worked in many disciplines.

"I was part owner of a gallery in Anchorage --  the Rogue's Gallery in the 1960s. In those days, I painted in oil. Also in the 1960s I began sculpting in clay and stone. In the late 1970s, we moved to Sitka, where I returned to some of the art inspired by my culture, such as weaving, carving and bentwood boxes. Some interesting opportunities for travel have grown from my art involvement. My daughter Teri and granddaughter Erin and I were invited to lecture and demonstrate at the New York Museum of Natural History and Art, the Peabody Museum at Yale and Humboldt State University in Arcata, California.

"I went to the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, Mass., as a consultant for the Heritage Center in Anchorage. And I was invited twice to take part in art symposiums in New Zealand, once in 1993 as a weaver with indigenous weavers from around the Pacific Rim, and then in 1995 as a carver.

After retirement from SEATEL, my husband and I now have a small art business called Creations By Laws."

An Yaá is an old name derived from the Raven House of Angoon, Alaska.

Brian is Tlingit from Tlingit Aani. He is of the Raven moiety and Deisheetaan clan, whose crest is the Beaver. He comes from the Raven House in Angoon but was born and raised in Juneau, Alaska. Brian's Tlingit name "An Yaá" translates to "Face of the Village."

For the past 20 years, Brian has been woodcarving. Brian's brothers, Gene Chilton and Doug Chilton, taught him the basics and techniques. He also learned through the Indian Studies program in Juneau schools.

Brian has developed a unique style of his own. His artwork includes three-dimensional totems, large paddles, small paddles, dance paddles, masks, 2 1/2 dimensional totems, plaques of all sizes and silver carvings, including bracelets, pendants and earrings.