This lidded cedar bark basket is woven by Tsimshian/Tlingit artist Vivian Benson in a Haida style. Benson is known for her fine mixed media artistry and is regularly featured in Sealaska Heritage Institute’s (SHI) bi-annual Celebration juried art exhibition. She received honourable mention from SHI for her basketry work in 2010 and again in 2016 for her piece titled Nsipsiip’nsgu.

Woven from cedar bark in a plain twinning style, this basket has a band of “strawberry” pattern woven onto the side of the basket using an overlay method with strips of cedar dyed red. There is a single row of three strand twining separating the band of patterning from the body of the basket. The peaked lid is woven with two bands of dyed red cedar and topped with a knob of “strawberry” weave patterning. The combination of the shape and unusual weaving pattern creates a unique and charming lidded basket.

Sarah Raven