About the Artist

The tag included with this basket reads as follows: "This particular basket was designed and made by Helen Lonetree - daughter of Chief White Eagle. Helen is 53 years old. This unique basket was originally designed to 'hold the dreams of the Winnebagos'. These Indian handmade pieces require many weeks of preparation before the actual construction is started. Due to the characteristics of the wood required, the Black Ash is used. Locating the proper tree us becoming more and more difficult and many days are spent locating the proper tree. Once the ash is cut, it takes one day to pound it down inorder to separate the annual rings unto thin sheets from the log. The uniformity of these strips is extremely accurate considering they are hand cut with only a knife. Once the strips are sorted and cut to size, they are dyed in the color of the tribe. Each Indian woman then spends two to five hours assembling a basket in her own particular design and style."