CLARA KEEZER's 3" Sweetgrass w/long loops basket

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CLARA KEEZER's 3" Sweetgrass w/long loops basket

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Sold Date: 11/14/2007
Channel: Online Auction
Source: eBay
Category: Ethnic, Folk & Native American Art

A fairly recent style developed by Clara Keezer this has a lovely lid with the sweetgrass loops raising up in the center - quite nice!

Clara Keezer, Passamaquoddy basketmaker was a winner of a NEA 2002 Heritage Fellowship award for her basketry work. According to the NEA website, this award is "the country's highest honor in the folk and traditional art" -... and includes all folk arts and crafts including but not limited to - music, dance, performance art and traditional crafts and arts.

This basket is made of brown ash, the traditional material of Maine and Eastern Canadian basketmakersand also incorporates tightly and finely braided tidal sweetgrass as the weaver for the entire bottom of the basket and a special decorative element on the lid. This is grass found in the tidal marshes near the Pleasant Point home of the Keezers. The grass harvested in the late summer by Clara's son Rocky, then dried and braided by her sister, Edith Pond - whose sweetgrass braids are among the most perfectly done I have ever found. The use of tidal sweetgrass in baskets was highly valued at the turn of the last century when traders and customers would pay a premium for baskets which had quantities of sweetgrass - such as this on.

NOTE: - Someone bought a similar basket of Clara Keezer's (but a bit different) from me last year; that customer wanted another - but I have lost the name and address of that person. Is it you? EMAIL ME Re: this basket & your loop basket - - sorry for losing track of you!

It is 3" in diameter, and 2.5" high. This basket has been signed and dated by Clara as shown in the slideshow. . Be sure to view the slideshow to see more pics of this basket

The slideshow also includes a picture of Clara taken last May and a picture of the 3 Keezer basketmakers, Clara and sons Kenny and Rocky taken during my October 2006 "Basketmakers of the Dawn" Tour. While at the Keezers' in October, Clara had many baskets - more than I had seen her make in many years. She has recovered from some of her recent illnesses and learned to manage others. A few years ago she made only 3 or 4 baskets the entire year. It is just wonderful to see her healthy enough to work and make baskets in quantity again.

Would you be interested in meeting Clara, and sons Rocky and Kenny along with many of the best working Maine Indian basketmakers? email me about my spring or fall 2007 "Basketmakers of the Dawn" tours - We will also be visiting Maine museums and viewing private collections of antique Maine/Eastern Canadian baskets.