Congratulations to Ed Eugene Carriere (Suquamish) for being named a 2023 National Endowment for the Arts Heritage Fellow.
For more than 40 years, the NEA has annually presented these lifetime honors in recognition of the diverse cultural traditions that comprise our nation and the individuals whose dedication and artistry contribute to their preservation and growth. Each fellowship includes a $25,000 award. Fellowship recipients are nominated by the public, often by members of their own communities, and then judged by a panel of experts in the folk and traditional arts. The panel’s recommendations are reviewed by the National Council on the Arts, which sends its recommendations to the chair of the NEA, who makes the final decision.
The Fall 2019 issue of the NBO magazine features Ed and Dr. Dale Croes in “Generationally Linked Archaeology: The Study Of Ancient Salish Sea Basketry” by Carrie Anne Vanderhoop. The featurer details how Ed was taught basket weaving by his grandmother. “In those days, you didn’t dare ask questions, you just had to watch and learn,” Carriere explained. He would gather weaving material for his grandmother—cedar limbs, bark, and roots. “If they weren’t good enough I’d find them thrown in the backyard and that’s how I learned what to look for.”