Browse Exhibits (27 total)
Baltimore Oriole Quill Box
This circular quill-work box was created using porcupine quills, birch bark, and sweet grass by Lorraine Besito from the Perry Island Reserve in Canada. It was purchased from a store called Ward and Eis in Petoskey, MI, and added to the collection of Katherine C. Vail between 1980 and 2016. On the top of this box is a picture of a yellow Baltimore Oriole holding a branch with leaves and red berries on it. On the bottom of the box is the signature of Lorraine Besito.
Black Ash Basket with Antler Stand
This black ash basket with antlers was handcrafted in Nedrow, New York by husband and wife duo, Ronni-Leigh Goeman and Stonehorse Goeman in 2004. The base of the basket is narrow at 3 1/2" in diameter and is woven from sweet grass. The lid has a 2" band of braided woven sweetgrass at the rim, a 2 1/2" band of curly black ash on top of the lid, a 3/4" band of flat woven black ash, then a flat band of woven sweet grass. Total diameters are 9 1/2" by 14". It is created and detailed with black ash tree, braided sweetgrass and tufted horse hair on the top accompanied by a carved deer antler stand (MSU Museum).
Chippewa Glove Box
A Chippewa quill work glove box. The top of the box has one word- Gloves; embroidered in all capital letters. Surrounding the letters a floral pattern is embroderied in white, yellow, green, and red.The sides of the box continues with a similar floral pattern, but in white, red, and violet. This artwork is unique to the United States and Canada. It is also estimated that this box was made at the turn of the 20th century, because of the various tourist industries focused around Native culture at this time period.
The dimensions of this box are 10.5 in (Width), 2.75 in (Height), 3.75 in (Depth). The materials used to make this box are birchbark, sweetgrass, and quills
Four Views of a Bandolier Bag
A Chippewa bandolier bag is a large, heavy, and intracitely beaded bag that is traditionally worn by men diagonally across the body. They represent a form of prestige for many of the tribes who make them. The bag's floral designs are indicative of the Great Lakes Native American arts and showcases various beadworking techniques. The amount of work needed to make a bandolier bag suggests that it may have been produced together by generations of indigenous women.
Four Views of a Basswood Woven Bag
The basswood woven bag, at a first glance seems like a simple object, yet it is embeded in a web of complexities. These four views reflect the theme of a cycle of renewal, exploring different components that add to the intricacy of this object and its relation to different groups of people.
Four Views of a Bear Paw Quill Box
This quill box, was created by the renowned quill work artist Yvonne Walker Keshick, who also goes by the Indigenous name Falling Leaf, of the Little Traverse Band Bay of Odawa/Ojibwe Indians. Dubbed here as the bear paw quill box for the bear paw design on its lid, it is a small box, about 4” wide, 2” tall, and only half the box was designed with finished quill work. The bear paw quill box is particularly remarkable because it was designed in this manner intentionally, for the purpose of serving as an educational tool. Wrapped in sweet grass and bound with sinew, it is nonetheless an impressive display of quill work, made with undyed quills as is typical of Yvonne Keshick Walker’s work.
Other examples of Yvonne Keshick Walker's work-
Four Views of a Birch Bark Container
This small, circular birch bark container features quillwork flowers that are dyed pink and green. Each flower has three petals, suggesting the red clover (which has been shown to relieve menopausal symptoms, as studied here). The lid of the container, attached with leather ties, is embellished with the same floral quillwork. Rose Nance Archedene crafted the container, which measures 4.5 inches in height and 6 inches in diameter. The donor of the handcrafted object notes the basket was made by native peoples in the Northwestern woodlands region of Canada.
Four Views of a Birchbark Container
Lidded birch bark container made from one solid birch bark piece, stitched together with root. The container has a solid birch bark lid and a hide handle. On the outside of the container are several etched designs, mostly floral and geometric.
Four Views of a Black Ash Basket
This is a Black Ash basket created in 2008 by Cherish Parrish, a member of the Match-e-be-nash-she-wish Band of Pottawatomi Indians. She is of Ottawa descent and lives in Michigan. The basket is entitled "The Next Generation." The dimensions of the basket are 36.5" x 15.0" x 12.2" and is made from Black Ash tree splints, with a sweetgrass trim at the top. It is woven to represent the belly of a pregnant woman and illustrate the significance of pregnancy in Native American socieities. Parrish also used Black Ash weaving in creating the basket to bring attention to the plight of the endangered Black Ash trees in the Great Lakes area.
Four Views of a Ceremonial Dance Hand Fan
This fan is composed of eight turkey feathers arranged in a flat diamond-shape with the base made of two uniform pieces of birchbark sewn with a root twine. On the base of the fan there is extraordinary porcupine quillwork featuring three red flowers with green stems and yellow centers. At the bottom of the handle there are two yellow petals and one red petal connnecting the flower stems and petals together. A tag attached to the fan says "Ottawa-style porcupine on birchbark dance fan ($85)" indicating this is a contemporary piece. The handle is 10 1/4" long, with the feathers adding another 6 1/2", totaling 16 3/4 inches long.