James H. Barker was born on Nov. 23, 1936 and lived a rich and productive life. He died peacefully after a long illness on March 21, 2026. He was 89. Jim grew up in Pullman, Washington where his father, Charles Barker, taught engineering at Washington State University (WSU). He spent childhood summers at a university camp high in the Cascade Mountains, where his mother Margaret shared her love of hiking with her three boys. Eventually, Jim climbed Mount Rainier twice and wrote Cascade trail guides. Later in his youth, he backpacked extensively in the Sierras. In his early twenties, Jim worked at WSU as a technical photographer and videographer. He also began to take pictures of migrant workers in the area, and discovered his love of photographing people. Jim was a musician, too, playing clarinet and saxophone in a local jazz band. Given his diverse creative interests, Jim took a circuitous route through college, attending WSU on a music scholarship, then Art Center School of Design in Los Angeles in photography, and finally graduating from San Francisco State University with a degree in visual anthropology. By the mid-1960s he started working as a self-employed freelance photographer. With brief exceptions, that’s what he did for the rest of his life. He is well known for his work in Alaska, especially in the Bethel region where he lived from 1973 until 1987. There, in 1975, he met his wife, Robin Bailey Barker. Their son, Eric, was born in 1981 and the family moved to Fairbanks in 1987, where he lived until his death. Jim was known for his delightful and sometimes bewildering sense of humor and for his generally positive view of the world. He was a loving partner with Robin for fifty years. He leaves behind a cherished trove of the many letters he wrote to her during the times he was away on extensive photo shoots. He was also a loving and attentive father, sharing his enjoyment of the outdoors and his enthusiasm for “seeing a little country” on LONG car camping trips. Eric will have a lifetime of memories of his Dad engaging him in various outlandish antics. Eric learned that you can make pickle relish by throwing pickles from the loft into a whirring blender below. Most of all, Jim shared his love of music with his son, always encouraging Eric’s talents. Jim had an extensive collection of contemporary jazz which he played at deafening volume. And anyone who visited him at home knew that he listened to NPR unceasingly with a radio on in every room. Throughout his life, Jim enjoyed encouraging young photographers. For many years, artists in a variety of media brought their work to him to be photographed, so he had a considerable group of friends in Fairbank’s larger art world. Photographer Charles Mason was a particular friend for decades and especially in Jim’s last years. Over his lifetime he produced four major portfolios. The first documents the historic 1965 Selma March for African American voting rights. Following a 2015 show, these photographs were described in the New York Times review of the exhibit as being unique in their intimacy. This was emblematic of his work for the rest of his life. He worked on his next project for two years, capturing the everyday lives of a welfare family with nine children in Marin County California. Then, during and after his thirteen years of residence in Bethel, he photographed Yupik people’s lives in the region. Among other awards, Jim was recognized as Distinguished Artist by the Rasmuson Foundation in 2022 and given a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Cama-i Festival in Bethel. His last major portfolio was of scientists and staff in Antarctica, where he received an almost unprecedented second National Science Foundation Antarctic Artists and Writers Fellowship. In Jim’s words, he tried “to reveal the nature of the people, their emotions and developing relationships.” He exhibited in galleries and major museums around the country and co-authored three books: Bethel, The First Hundred Years, Always Getting Ready - Upterrlainarluta, and Yupiit Yuraryayrait - Yup’ik Ways of Dancing. Jim will be greatly missed. He is preceded in death by his two brothers, Dick and Tom, and Tom’s wife, Doris. He leaves behind Dick’s wife, Jude and many Barker nieces and nephews in Seattle and around the country. He will be mourned by Robin’s three brothers and wives: John Bailey, Holly Menino, Jim Bailey, Rosemary Feely, George Bailey, Laurie Sampson and all their children and grandchildren. He will also be missed by his “chosen family” who met in Bethel, raised their children together and moved to Fairbanks in the mid eighties. They are Cheryl Keepers, Mark Andrews, Phyllis Morrow, Chase Hensel, Corlis and James Taylor, and Torie and Thom Foote. They were Jim’s loving friends for fifty years. A Celebration of Life will be held at 4:00 on May 10th at the Mushers Hall in Fairbanks. In lieu of flowers, please make donations in his name to KYUK or KUAC radio.