Linda
04-20-2002, 02:06 AM
Check out the article on our buddy, Tom. Now we know why he talks so passionately about basketmaking techniques.
Arts traditions handed down through the generations
Tom Poulsen (from Fort Macleod, Alberta) is a weaver both literally and figuratively: his basketry shows an exceptional mastery of Aboriginal weaving traditions, and his practice is grounded in constant research that leads him to weave ties with other craft artists, including those in the new generation, whom he has been teaching on a regular basis. Beginning with his initiation into weaving river cane and pine needles, Tom Poulsen’s journey has made him a repository for the traditional Aboriginal art of basketry. He was recently chosen by two elders in the Blackfoot-Cherokee community in northern Georgia as the artistic heir of the legendary Fire Bringer tradition. Jerry King and his 96-year-old mother wanted to bequeath their knowledge to the Alberta artist, for they consider that his work reveals a mastery of the art similar to that of their ancestor, from 150 years ago. The almost mythical technique of the Fire Bringer is thought to be at the origins of basket-weaving, and for the rare few familiar with it, it represents a taboo, since its basic materials are cat tails, food of the alligators.
http://www.canadacouncil.ca/news/newsletter/newsletter-09/images/pict_10.jpg
Photo: Tom Poulsen, renowned weaver from Fort Macleod, Alberta
This article can be found at http://www.canadacouncil.ca/news/newsletter/newsletter-09/2002_09_04-e.asp
[This message has been edited by Linda (edited 04-20-2002).]
Arts traditions handed down through the generations
Tom Poulsen (from Fort Macleod, Alberta) is a weaver both literally and figuratively: his basketry shows an exceptional mastery of Aboriginal weaving traditions, and his practice is grounded in constant research that leads him to weave ties with other craft artists, including those in the new generation, whom he has been teaching on a regular basis. Beginning with his initiation into weaving river cane and pine needles, Tom Poulsen’s journey has made him a repository for the traditional Aboriginal art of basketry. He was recently chosen by two elders in the Blackfoot-Cherokee community in northern Georgia as the artistic heir of the legendary Fire Bringer tradition. Jerry King and his 96-year-old mother wanted to bequeath their knowledge to the Alberta artist, for they consider that his work reveals a mastery of the art similar to that of their ancestor, from 150 years ago. The almost mythical technique of the Fire Bringer is thought to be at the origins of basket-weaving, and for the rare few familiar with it, it represents a taboo, since its basic materials are cat tails, food of the alligators.
http://www.canadacouncil.ca/news/newsletter/newsletter-09/images/pict_10.jpg
Photo: Tom Poulsen, renowned weaver from Fort Macleod, Alberta
This article can be found at http://www.canadacouncil.ca/news/newsletter/newsletter-09/2002_09_04-e.asp
[This message has been edited by Linda (edited 04-20-2002).]