Once used by Native people for food, storage, cooking, ceremony and all-around utilitarian purposes, Native American basketry has become much more than that. Eventually, basketry became an interest of the growing population of Euro-Americans, and by the early 20th century, Native American basket makers and weavers began to incorporate elaborate designs and weaving techniques. They also began using a wider variety of materials to serve as decoration. Within this section, we highlight both traditional and contemporary baskets available for purchase, providing a broad look at masterpieces that honor the past, while also looking to the future.
Heard Museum Shop
The shop at the Heard Museum is known for its integrity in offering authentic Native American artworks, as it deals directly with the artists. In this way, the museum is also able to help support American Indian artists and their families. Pictured here, and offered for sale at the museum shop, is a finely woven, 5¼-inch miniature horsehair basket by Dorina Garcia (Tohono O’odham), that features a beautiful star design. The shop notes that the Tohono O’odham people “originated the use of horsehair in making miniature baskets sometime in the 1960s.”
2301 N. Central Avenue » Phoenix, AZ 85004
(602) 346-8190 » www.heardmuseumshop.com
Jesse Robbins Jewelry
Jesse Robbins Jewelry is offering a wonderful Chemehuevi basket. This coiled oval tray represents a classic example of the incredible craftsmanship and skill Chemehuevi weavers possessed between the 19th and early 20th centuries. Making this particular basket special, the L1190 accession number inked on the back of the basket is from when Francis Xavier Ammann loaned his collection to the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County in June 1929. For more on the Francis Xavier Ammann Chemehuevi story and to see more baskets available from the collection, please visit the website listed below.
(928) 713-6847 » www.jesserobbinsjewelry.com
jesserobbinsaz@gmail.com
Santa Fe Art Auction
Included in Santa Fe Art Auction’s upcoming Signature Annual Sale from November 4 to 5, are beauties such as this polychrome olla basket. The piece is dated between 1910 and 20, made with willow and devil’s claw, and is 18 inches high by 20½ inches in diameter. The estimate is $40,000 and $60,000.
932 Railfan Road » Santa Fe, NM 87505 » (505) 954-5858
curator@santafeartauction.com » www.santafeartauction.com
Ancient Nations
“On Third Mesa, Hopi weavers specialize in wicker basketry,” notes Ancient Nations associates. “They make wicker plaques, cradles and burden baskets by weaving flexible stems of local plants such as rabbit brush, scrub sumac and arroyo willow and over and under stiffer support stems. There are many colors and designs used in wicker plaques and baskets.” This particular 13-inch Hopi wicker basket by Wilmetta Kayquoptewa features a majestic bald eagle—eagle feathers are an important part of Hopi ceremonial life.
(800) 854-1359 » www.ancientnations.com
Vivian Garner Cottrell
When harvesting materials for weaving, Cherokee basket maker Vivian Garner Cottrell thinks of size, the shape—single or double woven—and the patterns that will be used in each basket that she will be weaving for the next several months. “Due to the limited amount of rivercane baskets that I am able to weave each year,” she explains, “I weave other natural materials.” Each basket is one of a kind and woven upon receipt of order. Pictured here is an example of a rivercane double weave made by special order.
Holly Pyke Baskets and Beadwork
Artist Holly Pyke finds inspiration for basket making from everything she sees around her, “whether it is the delicate subtle color change of flower petals or the bright colors found in a picture from a magazine,” she says. “I also find inspiration in nature…particularly the river located behind my home. This basket was meant to look like the ripples on the river when the wind causes ripples but not so much as to cause waves—more like a gentle breeze.”
(518) 651-1105 » holpyke@yahoo.com
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