Pope Basket

Sheila Kanieson Ransom, Pope Basket, 2021, sweetgrass and black ash splints with commercial dye, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase made possible by Frances Dubrowski and David Buente, 2021.79
Sheila Kanieson Ransom, Pope Basket, 2021, sweetgrass and black ash splints with commercial dye, 6 in. × 10 58 in. (15.2 × 27 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase made possible by Frances Dubrowski and David Buente, 2021.79

Artwork Details

Title
Pope Basket
Date
2021
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
6 in. × 10 58 in. (15.2 × 27 cm)
Credit Line
Museum purchase made possible by Frances Dubrowski and David Buente
Mediums
Mediums Description
sweetgrass and black ash splints with commercial dye
Subjects
  • Object — other — basket
Object Number
2021.79

Artwork Description

Sheila Ransom made this basket to honor Kateri Tekakwitha (1656–1680), a Mohawk woman who was made a saint by the Catholic church in 2012. A prototype of this basket was given to the pope in honor of the canonization.


Ransom learned basketry from her godmother, renowned basket maker Mae Bigtree. The basket, in the traditional purple and white Mohawk colors, is made of sweetgrass interwoven with black ash splints. Black ash trees are currently being devastated by the invasive emerald ash borer, making it increasingly difficult for Native weavers like Ransom to source their wood.

This Present Moment: Crafting a Better World, 2022

Works by this artist (3 items)

Edward Kienholz, Nancy Reddin Kienholz, Sollie 17, 1979-1980, mixed media construction, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase through the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment, 2001.58, © 1980, Nancy Reddin Kienholz
Sollie 17
Date1979-1980
mixed media construction
Not on view
Edward Kienholz, Untitled, n.d., encaustic on fiberboard, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Patricia Colleen McCall, 1982.125
Untitled
Daten.d.
encaustic on fiberboard
Not on view
Edward Kienholz, Nancy Reddin Kienholz, Drawing for Sollie 17, 1980, mixed media construction, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of G & W Investments, 2001.59A-D, © 1980, Nancy Reddin Kienholz
Drawing for Sollie 17
Date1980
mixed media construction
Not on view

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