The Coleman Center for the Arts and Culture
Handmade: Basketry from the Deep South
Handmade: Basketry from the Deep South is the conception of guest curator, Jean Harwell, from Cuba, Alabama. It includes work by Sterling Johnson, Mary Ella Johnson, Lynn Morris, Estelle Jackson, Leobrado Johnson, Mary Jane Everett, Marilyn Huey, Mary Hicks, Bessie D. Johnson, and Dawn Johnson.
Ms. Harwell has been dedicated to the preservation of the art of basket making and has been collecting baskets from regional basket makers for many years. She agreed to lend her expertise and personal collection to the project. More than twenty baskets from her collection will be shown in the exhibition. “The baskets I treasure most are family heirlooms that were crafted at the Penn School in Beaufort, South Carolina after the Civil War. The art was taught by descendants of slaves from the Sierra Leone region of Africa. The utilitarian baskets were acquired by my great grandparents and were passed down through the generations. The seagrass baskets made in the Sea Islands of South Carolina are today woven by ancestors of these early artisans. I have become a collector and prize each basket for its uniqueness. My collection of the North Carolinian baskets will also be on display. The artistry and tradition combined in intricate patterns and woven into beautiful and functional baskets are fascinating to me,” Ms. Harwell said.
The exhibition features artists and collections from around Alabama and Mississippi. Many artists, such as the Johnson/Jackson Family, follow a rich family tradition of basket making. The late Sterling Johnson passed on the tradition of utilitarian white oak basketry to his wife Mary Ella and his daughter Estelle. Following in the family tradition, Leobrado Johnson is now also focused on the art of basket making. The family uses freshly cut, young white oak trees and splits each strip by hand and then weaves them all together to form functional, rustic baskets.
A rich tradition of pine-needle basket making provides the foundation for Mississippi artists Lynn Morris, Bessie D. Johnson and her daughter-in-law and apprentice, Dawn Johnson as well as Eutaw, Alabama artist Mary Hicks. A shortage of fabric during the Civil War resulted in many Southern fieldworkers turning to pine needles to protect their heads. Ms. Hicks’ pine needle hats illustrate the origin of the art. Bessie D. Johnson brings a contemporary edge to the heritage of her basket making, weaving in halved walnut shells, gourds and yarn work. Ms. Morris creatively enhances the beauty of her baskets by banding them with rich color.
Both Mary Jane Everett from Geiger, Alabama and Marilyn Huey from Springville, Alabama bring contemporary ideas to traditional woven basket making. After years of making various arts & crafts, Ms. Everett began focusing on basket making five years ago. She brings a fine art to basket making with finely finished wooden handles and a smooth symmetry made of hardwoods, reeds and hand-processed kudzu bark. Marilyn Huey brings an incredible variety to her basket making, making at least one basket a day in an amazing assortment of shapes and sizes.