Description
This is a contemporary Cherokee picnic/market/purse basket. It is woven with red maple wood that was made into splints using a planer. The maple was scraped, cut and trimmed to size by hand using wood scissors and a sloyd knife.The splints are dyed with hand-processed natural dyes: black walnut for the brown, bloodroot for the orange, Osage orange wood shavings for the yellow and madder root for the darker red-orange.The handles are machine-lathed using white ash and oak for the stakes.
Category
Basketry: Contemporary
Materials
Maple wood (splints), ash wood (handles), oak wood(stakes), blood root dye(orange), black walnut dye(brown), Osage Orange dye (yellow) and madder dye (red-orange).
Dimensions
18" x 18" x 10"
Michael Dart, Cherokee National Treasure
Cherokee Nation
About the Artist
Michael Dart is a basketry artist from the Fairfield Cherokee Community on the Cherokee Nation Reservation. Beginning in 1993 at the age of 16, Dart has committed more than half of his life to his art form. Dart uses contemporary and traditional materials to create his baskets, including honeysuckle, buckbrush, and other various wood types, as well as commercial basket reed for his more contemporary art pieces. He specializes in natural dye making. Dart has been participating in competitive art shows and markets since 2005 and has won numerous national-level awards. In 2017, he was named a Cherokee National Treasure, which is a prestigious title given by his tribe to artists and traditionalists who excel in their fields and show a passion for passing their knowledge on to the next generations.
Pickup & Shipping
All artworks sold will be shipped from the gallery after the show closes. Packages should go out no later than September 20, 2025. Visit here to learn more about shipping and handling as well as tax-exempt purchases.