Artwork copyright Nettie Kuneki Jackson. Photo courtesy of the artist.

People of the World, 1991

Nettie Kuneki Jackson
(American | Yakama Nation | Klickitat, born 1942, died 2013)

Location: Washington State Arts Commission, Olympia

ABOUT THE ARTWORK

Late Klickitat artist Nettie Kuneki Jackson hand crafted the basket People of the World using a traditional coiling technique. The imagery depicts different people living in harmony with nature. Kuneki Jackson noted that this type of basket was made to pick and store berries, and stated "because they are made of cedar, they resist mold and mildew. In the old days, these baskets were used to carry water and to cook in. When hot stones were dropped into a basket full of water, the water would boil. Then the fish or other food cooks quickly."

This artwork was acquired for the State Art Collection in partnership with Peninsula School District.

ABOUT THE ARTIST

Native American artist Nettie Kuneki Jackson (Yakama and Klickitat, 1942-2013) is a celebrated and respected Klickitat basket maker, descended from a family of master basket weavers. The Klickitat people are from Central Washington and Oregon.

Kuneki Jackson did not learn basket weaving until age thirty, as it seemed unimportant to modern life. Growing up, she spent her summers with her Klickitat grandmother, Mattie Spencer Slockish, who was a skilled basket maker. Later she watched her mother-in-law, Elsie Thomas, make baskets using traditional shapes and materials such as beargrass and split cedar. Jackson was inspired by these women and by her mother's wish before her death in 1972, that her daughters take up tribal traditions. She carried on those traditions as a prolific and creative basket maker who was also dedicated to keeping the tradition of Klikitat basket weaving alive.

Kuneki Jackson co-authored a book titled "The Heritage of Klickitat Basketry" (1982). She was also featured in the award-winning documentary film "And Woman Wove It In a Basket" (1989) that examines the spiritual and cultural importance of basket weaving as a way for contemporary Klickitat women to reclaim their native heritage. She was honored with a Washington State Governor's Heritage Award in 1992 and a National Heritage Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts in 2000. She lived and worked in the small town of White Swan, near Yakima, Central Washington.