Sunrise/Sunset CrowBells

I discovered my passion for basketmaking about twenty-five years ago, weaving traditional, utilitarian forms. My sculptural pieces evolved from my need to “change the pattern a little bit” or add different materials with the reeds. Baskets can provide an extremely fertile area for experimentation, and I often build my basket shapes on stoneware or wooden bases using natural and dyed round reed with materials that include feathers, husks, draceana and iris leaves, horsehair, and broom straw. My latest series of waxed linen thread vessels, each containing a jingle bell, was inspired by a crow who left a shiny bell on my balcony in exchange for a forgotten bowl of nuts. I created the closed-form vessels to honor and protect the bell (I purchased more), and ... just for fun.