Containing Interwoven Histories: Indigenous Basket Weaving in Art Education

Abstract

In college and graduate school, I worked as the director of summer arts programs at sleep-away and day camps near the ocean. A paint shortage halfway through one summer led me to sort through seemingly ancient art materials boxed and forgotten from a predecessor’s supply stash. I located several dusty half-made baskets and unwoven reeds. One of my staff members expressed great joy at this finding. Obliging her interest and initiative, our students trailed out of the art cabin later that afternoon, wading into the cool and shallow water along the shore, equipped with reeds and her helpful guidance on basket weaving. That day, a calm washed over us as we wove water-softened reeds into baskets and discussed the history, use, and look of them along the beach. Weaving in beads, shells, and scraps of colorful paper over subsequent sessions, we were spellbound by the process Meilach (1974) described as “revising creative methods used centuries ago” (p. 1).