Ahvakana's heritage is Inupiaq/ Inuit.  His art education took place at the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe (1966-1969) and at the Rhode Island School of Design, where he earned his BFA in 1972.  

Ahvakana's solo exhibitions have taken place at the Alaska State Museum in Juneau and at the Anchorage Historical and Fine Arts Museum (1977), at the Arctic Bay Trading Company in Carmel, California (1984), at Von Grabill Fine Arts in Scottsdale, Arizona (1985) and at the Stetter Gallery in Phoenix, Arizona.  His work has been included in museum venues throughout the United States, in Canada and in Greenland.