NEVADA ARTS COUNCIL NEWS RELEASE – Sue Coleman to share Washoe basketry art at Nevada Legislature, May 8. Sue Coleman, one of Nevada’s preeminent Washoe basket weavers, presents the final lecture-demonstration of The Work of Artists series on Thursday, May 8, from 3:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. in room 3100 of the Legislative Building in Carson City. A collaborative initiative of the Nevada Arts Council and SENarts, The Work of Artists is designed to provide an opportunity for artists to engage with community members and those working in and visiting the Nevada State Legislature at 401 S. Carson St. All presentations offered by The Work of Artists are free and open to the public.
“The women in Coleman’s family are renowned for precise weaving and decoration on their traditional willow baskets,” siad Susan Boskoff, Nevada Arts Council executive director. “Her ancestors, like many Washoe people, moved between Lake Tahoe in the summers and the Dresslerville/Carson Valley area in the winters.”
Coleman’s presentation will introduce the audience to various types of baskets, including the burden and gift baskets, winnowing tray and cradleboard. Emphasizing the complex process of basket-making, from collecting and preparing plant materials to the progressive weaving steps necessary to complete each basket, she will discuss the ancient and traditional practices still followed today. Among them are gathering willow, bracken fern root and redbud bark in the appropriate seasons, and preparing the natural materials before embarking on the actual weaving and decoration.
The Nevada Arts Council, a division of the Nevada Department of Tourism and Cultural Affairs, is the agency charged with ensuring that state and national funds support cultural activity and encourage participation in the arts throughout Nevada. In addition to providing hundreds of grants to arts and community-based organizations, schools, artists and local municipalities throughout the state, the Arts Council coordinates a variety of statewide programs and activities such as the annual Poetry Out Loud recitation competition for high-school aged students, traveling exhibits, artist residencies, workshops and cultural assessments. For more information, please visit the department’s website at nac.nevadaculture.org/.
