#atla verse kuspuk week

[mostly-mundane-atla]

Atla-verse Kuspuk Week 2022

What is Atla-verse Kuspuk Week?

Kuspuk Week is a week of Avatar fan art featuring characters wearing regalia known as a kuspuk. While there's a lot of superficial aesthetic influence of Circumpolar cultures, the absolute lack of cultural influence, especially in comparison to the irl East Asian influences, make it feel cheap and appropriative. A kuspuk is a garment worn by Yup'ik peoples as well as the Inupiat (we would be considered "Alaskan Eskimos" if you've ever come across that term) which adapted Euro-American shirts and gowns to suit the silhouette of a parka and be able to be worn over one. They were originally pullover garments (though later, some variations would include a zipper) rather than closing in the front with buttons or a sash tied at the waist and have a loose, baggy fit that can provide insulation or ventilation, depending on the amount of layers worn underneath, as well as practical features like a hood and large, easily accessible pockets. The kuspuk is very much our take on clothes made of fabric rather than skins, with our chores and passtimes and cultures in mind, and they never once show up in the universe of Avatar: the Last Airbender.

The creators and artists and writers were perfectly happy to build off of our parka designs and give characters names like Kuruk, Unalaq, and Noatak, but they never once had a character in a kuspuk. This is especially gratuitous in Legend of Korra, where kuspuks would make even more sense with the irl historical period it draws most its inspiration from. Western business suits? Couldn't be a gritty dieselpunk fantasy without them. The 1920s-30s Hong Kong style cheongsam with its influence from western ideals? Perfectly appropriate for the setting of Legend of Korra. The fabric parkas we've been making out of flour sacks since the 1890s or even before which have since become a symbol of cultural pride suitable for formal events? Apparently not.

By participating in Kuspuk Week, I invite you to consider we are more than skin clothes on brown bodies with percussive names, since it seems like that's all canon considers us good for.

How do I find good visual references?

I've written a beginner's guide here. (Admittedly, my illustrations are lacking.)

Here's Alaska's state digital photo archives, filtered to only include items tagged "kuspuk"

Is this appropriative at all?

No. Anyone who makes kuspuks either is or learned from a Native, and the vast majority of people selling them (and thus making a profit off of them) are Native women. We have never had problems with outsiders fetishizing kuspuks the way some forms of Native regalia have been fetishized, and a kuspuk is more likely to be compared to a hoodie (despite predating pullover hoodies as we know them by at least a few decades) than exotified. Drawing kuspuks as an outsider will be understood as appreciation of the culture rather than appropriation.

Rules

Rules for all entries are as follows:

Keep it "gen." Shipping can be fun but is not the focus here.

May include as many characters as you want but they all should be wearing kuspuks

@ my blog (mostly-mundane-atla) so I can find it and reblog for my followers to see (if you don't want it to be reblogged for any reason, let me know)

Prompts

(Feb 28) Favorite Avatar in a Kuspuk.

Pretty self-explanitory. Favorite Avatar of any that show up in any canon work set in the universe. They just have to wear a kuspuk.

(Mar 1) Non-Water Tribe Character in a Kuspuk

Same deal. Any non-Water Tribe character you'd like wearing a kuspuk.

(Mar 2) Play

Character(s) in kuspuks playing games or with toys traditional to the regions Kuspuks are from. Consider consulting this post I wrote in response to childhood games and toys, but keep in mind that some of these were also enjoyed by adults

(Mar 3) Values

Pick a Traditional Inupiaq Value and have draw your kuspuk-wearing character(s) exemplifying it.

(Mar 4) In Korra's Time

At least one character in the drawing must be originally from Legend of Korra. Kuspuks because why else would you draw it for kuspuk week?

(Mar 5) Mythology and Folklore

Any myth or folktale you like (just again, please remember this is not shipping based). If you really wanna stretch it, you can use a fairy tale. Draw it with kuspuk'd Avatar characters. Traditional versions of props and wares optional but strongly encouraged

(Mar 6) -Piaq

The suffix -piaq is sometimes translated as "real" but mire accurately translates to "more of itself." What do our beloved characters look like when they are more of themselves, when they've fully grown into themselves? Figure that out and put them in a kuspuk.

Do as many or as few of the prompts as you want, and don't stress if it's late. I can't wait to see what you guys come up wìth!!

[risemaclay]

Kuspuk week: play and values

Event hosted by @mostly-mundane-atla

[ID: A digital fanart of Sokka and Katara from Avatar: the Last Airbender. They're sitting cross leg on the ground with two girls of their village. Sokka is engraving a driftwood doll, smiling looking at it, while one of the girls look at it with eyes full of wonder. Katara is holding the other girl close, talking to her, while she's hugginh tightly at her new doll Sokka and Katara made for her. All of them are wearing kuspuk of various colours decorated with flowers and geometric patterns. End ID]

In the AtLA universe we know that all the men left the village short after the raid that took Katara and Sokka's mom away. It certainly caused additional pain to the siblings, but it surely affected the other children of the village.

In the first two episodes of Avatar we saw many kids within the women, boys and girls from the age of 6 to 9 years old, I assume. The youngest ones wouldn't have a chance to met their fathers probably. Fathers wouldn't have a chance to create dolls for their daughters.

I think Sokka, deeply caring for their community, would take upon himself to engrave dolls for these girls that never met them. He at least had his father for sometime during his childhood, they didn't. And Katara would absolutely help him bringing a little joy in their lives.

[ninthfeather]

A pic of Katara for “Day 6: -Piaq” of @mostly-mundane-atla’s ATLA-verse Kuspuk Week. According to the prompt, “The suffix -piaq is sometimes translated as ‘real’ but mire accurately translates to ‘more of itself.’ What do our beloved characters look like when they are more of themselves, when they've fully grown into themselves?” My response is drawing a Katara who’s a new adult, probably around the age when she’s either thinking about kids or raising her first child. This is a Katara who has had time to mourn her mother and the parts of her childhood stolen by the war, who has been able to become her own person, and who is now choosing to become a caregiver because it’s what she wants, not because she’s the only person left to do it. She made this kuspuk for herself, but Sokka actually helped mend it last time some of the trim came lose, and she’s a little extra fond of it because of that. I tried my best with the rickrack; I hope it at least looks decent.