Native American Rugs, Blankets, and Quilts
The best-known native textile art in North America is the weaving of Navajo Indian blankets and rugs. These impressive (and expensive) rugs are still made in a style that was traditional in Mexico and the southwest United States long before the arrival of Europeans: kneeling before a vertical wooden-frame loom and using a shuttle to weave colored threads together into large-scale geometric designs. Originally Navajo and other Southwest Indian blankets were made of hand-spun cotton thread, but after the Spanish brought domestic sheep to the region the people primarily switched to wool. Though Navajo rugs are the most famous weavings in North America, they are certainly not the only one.
Finger-weaving has been important throughout the continent since ancient times, and finger-woven blankets, tapestries, and clothing are still made in many tribes. The chilkat blankets of Tlingit people are one of the finest examples of finger-woven Indian blankets. Seminole sashes and patchwork are another important Indian textile art. A more recent tradition is star quilts or blankets, which originated among the Sioux tribes (Lakota, Dakota, and Assiniboine) and spread throughout the Great Plains.
Quilting was one of many Artwork techniques that Native Americans developed from European traditions and adapted into something unique to their culture. Star quilts are made by piecing a mosaic of cloth diamonds into the shape of the traditional eight-pointed morning star design of the Sioux. Before the evolution of star quilts, traditional Plains Indian Robes were made from painted, quilled and beaded Buffalo hide. When the Buffalo herds were exterminated this artform largely died out, but some Plains tribe artists still make Buffalo robes and blankets today from the hides of animals raised in captivity.
Star Quilts, Star Robes, Star Blankets are made with great care and ceremony, these robes are presented to people that have achieved milestones in their life, during birth, childhood, adulthood, and old age, even during the passing into another world - people are given StarBlankets.
The Star is represented in these robes as it is a sign of new life -every morning the Elders would wake everyone in camp to come and greet the Morning Sun - if you are able to see the Morning Sun give thanks to the Creator for the gift of another day.
The First Nations People of Saskatchewan developed their livelihood dependant on the migrating Buffalo Herds, 95% of the Food, Shelter, Clothing, Ceremonies revolved around the Buffalo - with the dissappearance there had to be a great change.
Monday, December 10, 2007
The Snowman
The winter months are long and cold, children begin to play in the drifts, digging igloos and making snowmen. Back home when I was young there would be times when my younger brothers and I would play in the farmyard and when my parents werent home, we had to look after ourselves.
We played in the snow like other children, but there were restrictions as to how we were to play, partly because our gradparents were very strict about the traditional ways and partly because we believed in the traditions, we were cautioned about the Snowman and what that represented to the First Nation Assiniboine.
The First Nation Assiniboine depended on wild game for food, shelter and clothing, therefore the environment played a major part in the hunting conditions. The large game included Deer, Moose, Elk, Bear and Antelope, other smaller game also provided food and several household items. In the winter the people would follow the big game animals and often the hunting trips would take the hunter far out in the wilderness. In the winter the snow would slow the hunter down because they would fall into the drifts making it dangerous and often deadly especially in snow that was very deep. It is beleived that if the hunter made an image of a man that the snowman would bring cold weather to make the snow hard and easy to walk on. That is why when children make a snowman the old people would order them to break it for it was an invitation for cold weather.
We played in the snow like other children, but there were restrictions as to how we were to play, partly because our gradparents were very strict about the traditional ways and partly because we believed in the traditions, we were cautioned about the Snowman and what that represented to the First Nation Assiniboine.
The First Nation Assiniboine depended on wild game for food, shelter and clothing, therefore the environment played a major part in the hunting conditions. The large game included Deer, Moose, Elk, Bear and Antelope, other smaller game also provided food and several household items. In the winter the people would follow the big game animals and often the hunting trips would take the hunter far out in the wilderness. In the winter the snow would slow the hunter down because they would fall into the drifts making it dangerous and often deadly especially in snow that was very deep. It is beleived that if the hunter made an image of a man that the snowman would bring cold weather to make the snow hard and easy to walk on. That is why when children make a snowman the old people would order them to break it for it was an invitation for cold weather.
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