Arts & Entertainment
Baskets -- Basic Beautiful Bold
A new exhibit featuring Washoe Indian baskets opened August 22, 2012, at the Museum of the San Ramon Valley, 205 Railroad Ave., Danville. It is underwritten by Chevron. Contact the museum at 925-837-3750 or the web site at museumsrv.org. Museum hours are 1-4 Tuesday-Friday, 10-1 Saturday and 12-3 Sunday.
Baskets will be featured at the Museum from August 22 to November 4, 2012. But not just any baskets. These are baskets woven by California Indians who were and are some of the most accomplished basket weavers in the world. Twenty baskets from The Gatekeeper’s Museum in Tahoe City have been loaned to the Museum for this exhibit.
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Most of the baskets were created by Washoe Indians from the Lake Tahoe Basin area which includes both California and Nevada territories and extended to about 10,000 square miles of land. The Washoe language is unique and unrelated to that of adjoining tribes. Archaeologists trace the Washoe lifeways back around 2000 years. As with other Sierra and Great Basin Indian tribes, the discovery of gold and silver brought miners and settlers who ultimately “encroached on” and took the Washoe land from the tribe. Today there are approximately 1500 enrolled members of the Washoe Tribe of California and Nevada.
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Indians used baskets for everything, from baby carriers to cooking. Some were made quickly for utilitarian tasks, but many were planned in advance by gathering the correct materials, choosing a shape and patterns, and weaving thoughtfully and prayerfully. Indian weavers continue to create baskets today, although they face challenges in finding the basket materials when areas develop or private landowners refuse gathering permission.
This exhibit will accompany the Museum’s Indian Life Program for fourth graders at the museum each morning from September 13 to November 2, 2012. Please contact the museum directly to enroll a class in these programs at 925-837-3750.