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Tjanpi Desert Weavers, Wilkinson Street, Alice Springs NT, Australia

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Tjanpi Desert Weavers, Wilkinson Street, Alice Springs NT, Australia

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Tjanpi Desert Weavers, Wilkinson Street, Alice Springs NT, Australia

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The Tjanpi Desert Weavers collective was created in 1995 to provide Aboriginal women with economic opportunities in a highly impoverished environment. Through a multi-generational network of women weavers, a micro-industry program presents their work in an online shop and through international exhibitions. Using seeds and local grasses, women make baskets, sculptures and wall hangings as well as jewelry. Visit them at: https://tjanpi.com.au/

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Jalapão, Pindorama do Tocantins - State of Tocantins, Brazil

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Golden Grass Weaving, Jalapão, Pindorama do Tocantins - State of Tocantins, Brazil

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Golden Grass Weaving, Jalapão, Pindorama do Tocantins - State of Tocantins, Brazil

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Jalapão, 2023. © Loiro Cunha

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Golden grass weaving is done with the Capim Dourado plant in the Jalapao region of the Brazilian Amazon. This distinctive plant that thrives in wet environments is protected by the government as it is endangered by the climate crisis. Village women have developed a fair trade practice reflecting the intangible heritage traditions of the quilombola communities in Tocantins. In 2025, 37 women will present their work at the SP-Arte Rotas 2025 in São Paulo.

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Egyptian women weaving on a horizontal loom

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The earliest evidence of woven linen textiles dates back to 5000 BCE in Ancient Egypt, where archaeologists found mummies wrapped in such cloth. Egyptian women spinning and weaving are depicted in wall paintings.

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Woman waxing with a canting. From the Batik Guild website.

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Batik designs were rich in meaning and symbolism, some patterns reserved for the elite. Creating batik was considered a vital skill for young noble women. Before starting a new piece, she would spend a night in prayer and meditation. The cloths were crafted over many months. Traditionally, batik dyes were made from indigo plants that thrived in Java and were cultivated as a cash crop, and "soga," extracted from various tree barks and roots. In the north, a red was sourced from the roots of the mengkudu tree (Morinda citrifolia). While there is a move to synthetic dyes, some traditional studios maintain the natural dye techniques.

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Kamchatka Peninsula, Kamchatka Krai, Russia

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A famous shaman, Tatyana Vassilievna Kobezhikova, wearing clothing mimicking the Fly Agaric mushroom used for shamanic visions. Image credit: unknown.

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Fly Agaric Shamanism, Kamchatka Peninsula, Kamchatka Krai, Russia

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Fly Agaric Shamanism, Kamchatka Peninsula, Kamchatka Krai, Russia

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The Koryak people of Siberia’s Kamchatka Peninsula organize themselves into two distinct groups: the reindeer-herding inland dwellers and the maritime seal hunters on the coasts.

At the heart of Koryak spiritual life is the shaman, eñeñalan—“one who is inspired by the spirits.” While male shamans have traditionally been seen as the primary spiritual leaders for healing, divination, and managing spirits influencing daily life, women also hold a revered place within the shamanic tradition.

Koryak women have their own distinct spiritual roles, particularly around childbirth, family life, and the protection of children. Female shamans often focus on healing and nurturing, using their spiritual insight to guide mothers and infants through the critical stages of life. This is reflected in their ceremonial practices, which include chanting, drumming, and the sacred use of the fly agaric mushroom (Amanita muscaria).

Unlike their male counterparts, who perform rituals that involve communal and ceremonial leadership, Koryak women are seen as the spiritual protectors of the home. Their deep understanding of needlework—used not only for crafting but for creating protective garments and items imbued with spiritual significance.

In the Koryak belief system, the use of the sacred mushroom, Amanita muscaria, is not confined to male shamans. Spiritual wisdom is available to all, regardless of gender. Women, too, partake in the ritualistic consumption of the mushroom to gain visions, connect with spirits, and draw strength from the divine, continuing their sacred duties as intermediaries between the human and the supernatural.

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Photo: Bukovyna Center of Culture and Arts' Heritage Project

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Bukovyna ceremonial wreath, Chernivtsi, Chernivtsi Oblast, Ukraine

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Bukovyna ceremonial wreath, Chernivtsi, Chernivtsi Oblast, Ukraine

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The Bukovyna ceremonial wreath is made with feather grass for wedding ceremony in four villages of the Chernivtsi, Ukraine region: Ridkivtsi, Toporivtsi, Mahala, and Chornivka. Traditionally, the bride and her women friends used these wreaths to invite guests to the wedding. This rare tradition is now limited to these four villages. The tradition was entered on the UNESCO Intangible Heritage protection list in 2023. Today, a similar headdress in Ukraine known as the Vinok has been invoked for protests and parades as a symbol of national pride.

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From the documentary, OLINALÁ y sus famosas cajitas, una artesanía ancestral de nuestro estado. By Jonathan Alvarado Estudio on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lyyj3E-Bgsw

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Cajitas de Olinalá (laquered boxes,) Guerrero, Mexico

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Cajitas de Olinalá (laquered boxes,) Guerrero, Mexico

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This entry is inspired by research conducted by Xitally Barajas for the Potter’s Craft Culture and History course in Fall 2024. Barajas traced her family’s history through her grandmother, who crafted these distinctive boxes in their southern Mexican home. The boxes are traditionally made from linolae wood, known for its signature fragrance. Today, however, the linolae tree is endangered, and the boxes are now crafted from other woods and scented with linolae oil. The boxes are decorated using techniques such as lacquering, scratching, and gilding, reflecting the indigenous artistic traditions of southern Mexico.

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From Alfonso Garcia Tellez's Historia de la Curación de Antigua de San Pablito Pahuatlán Puebla ([Mexico]: Alfonso Garcia Tellez, [1978])

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Otomí Shamanic Amate Paper, Hidalgo, Mexico

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Otomí Shamanic Amate Paper, Hidalgo, Mexico

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This research, conducted by Regina Telinski for Potter's Craft Culture and History course at Columbia College Chicago, traces her family's Otomí heritage. The history of Otomí amate is rich and complex, with deep spiritual and social significance. Amate paper is made from the bark of fig trees, which is cooked and beaten into thin sheets. Shamans and healers traditionally carved figurines from this paper to cast spells and invoke healing spirits. While some women served as shamans within this tradition, today, they primarily help preserve the amate craft by selling it to tourists. However, this commercialization has obscured the original shamanic uses of amate. In the 1970s, Alfonso Garcia Tellez worked with his wife and daughter to create a limited edition book archiving the symbol systems of Otomí amate.

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Initial research inspired by Victoria Mak in Potter's Craft Culture and History and Artists' Books classes at Columbia College Chicago Fall 2024. Zhen Xian Bao box bookmaking is a rare tradition practiced by minority group women in China. They are made with mulberry paper because of the region's proximity to hand papermaking. They store threads and important objects such as photos or jewelry. A combination of tourism in the 1990s and interest from artists' bookmakers created a revival of interest in the tradition. However, it is still scarce as it is not passed down to the next generation due to a lack of demand for traditional textiles as well.

An out-of-print book, A Little Known Chinese Folk Art Zhen Xain Bao by Ruth Smith & Gina Corrigan is the only book on the topic. This book represents an important act of citizen ethnography devoted to sharing both the history and various styles and mechanics of the tradition.

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Ceremonial wreath made from roses, begonias and kimmernaasat by Laura Frederiksen, a Greenland Inuit edler. From a study on polar climate change and traditional plant knowledge featured on Simone Whitecloud's blog, https://dartmouthigert.wordpress.com/category/igert-fellows/simone-whitecloud/

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Lenore Grenoble, linguist from University of Chicago and IGERT’s Director of the Nuuk seminar and Simone S. Whitecloud studied the effects of climate change on Arctic communities. One of their areas of study is traditional plant knowledge of the Inuit Nanortalik and Qassiarsuk communities. They found nine women whom they interviewed about plant medicine and ceremonial items such as funeral wreaths and discovered this traditional knowledge is more alive than they initially expected. They published their findings in the 2014 essay,

"An Interdisciplinary Approach to Documenting Knowledge:

Plants and Their Uses in Southern Greenland."

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Still image from How to Make Juniper Berry Ghost Beads for Protection, Peace, Beauty, Balance, and Harmony. Hozho. Navajo Grandma, YouTube channel

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Ghost beads are made from cedar and juniper berries as protective amulets for Navajo people. This practice is a profound collaboration with non-human creatures: squirrels and other animals strip the seeds and create a hole as they eat them. They are gathered by elders, such as Rena Whitehorse to strand into necklaces. "Navajo Grandma" has a YouTube channel sharing this tradition and making it available to all.

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"Straw weaving in Syria a traditional handicraft that preserves tangible heritage," from SyriaTimes.sy.

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Syrian straw weaving is a traditional craft involving women of all ages working together to create straw plates to serve food. The women compete to make the plates as fast as possible while being together socially. Making food-related utility objects from natural materials is prized as a part of healthy and sustainable living. Like many international village traditions, today, women make these baskets for income and are passing down their intangible heritage to the next generation.

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Belle Deacon, an Alaskan birch bark basket weaver. Photograph by Barry McWayne

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Athabascan Indigenous women produce birch bark baskets for gathering, storing, and preparing food as it is naturally waterproof. Like many Indigenous groups of the Americas, baskets became an earned income opportunity to sell to tourists and the general public. Birch is gathered in spring when sap flows and birch bark is soft. Willow is used for the rims, gathered from riverbanks. Embellishment with roots were dyed with plants such as iris petals, blueberries, and alder. A well known weaver, Belle Deacon, passed the tradition down to her daughter and granddaughter. Today, baskets are still produced by members of the Northway, Alaska Athabascan community, which is about 300 people strong.

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HESPUHÚSIÐ – Plant dyeing studio, Olfus, Iceland

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HESPUHÚSIÐ – Plant dyeing studio, Olfus, Iceland

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The traditional flora of Iceland produces ranges of yellow, brown, and black natural dye. Botanist and teacher, Guðrún Bjarnadóttir studies locally available plants for wool dye and opens her studio to the public to purchase her work and learn more about this craft, which is deeply affected by climate warming impact on plants in this cold region of the world. She learned Icelandic wool dyeing craft and plant identification from her grandmother.

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Machiguenga Indian woman weaving with cotton in front of her hut, Yomibato native community, Manu National Park, Madre de Dios, Peru.
Copyright:© Andre Baertschi | wildtropix.com

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"Spider Woman" Ritual Cotton Weaving, CULTURA MATSIGENKA, Cuzco, Peru

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"Spider Woman" Ritual Cotton Weaving, CULTURA MATSIGENKA, Cuzco, Peru

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Machiguenga girls go through a seclusion initiation during which they spin cotton thread from scratch to weave a to weave her future husband’s cushma, a tunic. It can take up to 3 miles worth of cotton to produce a cushma. It is used both as attire and for sleeping in the cool Amazonian nights. Machiguenga histories include Spider Woman who spun cotton from her belly in her human state, but chose to become a spider to escape the endless toil of spinning cotton.

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Artwork by Louise Edwards, an artist who revived the tradition of tamarind seed art.

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Enslaved African women originally practiced the dying tradition of seed art in Antigua and Barbuda. Today there are very few practitioners left. The art is produced with tamarind seeds, which are considered invasive. Special collection methods ensure that the art does not spread, and the process is laborious. Anne Jonas founded Botanique Studios to teach workshops and preserve the tradition unique to this region.

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An embroidered lamak. From the Australian Museum collection (website.)

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Lamak are shrine hangings made for the gods by women. They were made from palm leaves and plants, as well as woven cloth and are painted, dyed, embroidered and hand-stamped. The central figure is usually "cili" a fertility deity. To date, Feminist Seed Bank has not located a contemporary lamak maker.

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Weavers National Hui, Kokohinau Marae, Te Teko 2001. Image from Maoriart.org.

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Te Roopu Raranga Whatu o Aotearoa (Māori  Weavers,) New Zealand

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Te Roopu Raranga Whatu o Aotearoa (Māori  Weavers,) New Zealand

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Founded in the 80s, the Te Roopu Raranga Whatu o Aotearoa is a group of Māori weavers protecting the plant-based weaving traditions of women.The Māori textile tradition is vast, utilizing several different plants, such as harakeke (New Zealand flax), wharariki, tī kōuka, tōī, pīngao, kiekie, nīkau and toetoe. Hand dyeing techniques using clay and other plants are part of this tradition. Weaving has broad application, from open-weave objects to strain vegetables, to finely-woven material for ceremonial clothing. The weaver's association has been responsible for internationally-touring exhibitions, a newsletter publication, and workshops.

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Raffia weaving on a loom created by men. From the La Maison Afrique Fair Trade website.

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Raffia weaving is an old women's tradition by ethnic groups such as the Sakalava in Madagascar. The raffia palm thrives in Madagascar's heat and is distinct to the region, as is the fine weaving tradition. Natural dye techniques for the fiber still exist. Fabrics were used for a variety of utility and spiritual practices. Several microindustry initiatives have revived the tradition and created modern fashion outlets for the work.

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Weaving jute fibers. Image: naturallybengal.com

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Dhokra (Jute) Weaving, West Bengal, India

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Dhokra (Jute) Weaving, West Bengal, India

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The women weavers of this ancient jute technique have preserved the historical tradition and created visibility for their indigenous community, the Rajbangshi. The jute is grown and dyed locally, and woven on backstrap looms constructed from bamboo. There are 1957 weavers approximately who are part of two major collectives supporting the production of this work.

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Gunga (pandanus spiralis and natural dyes) made by Sia Rose Walabanda. Featured on the Darwin Aboriginal Art Fair website.

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Ŋaṉmarra Wearables and Swaddles, Milingimbi NT, Australia

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Ŋaṉmarra Wearables and Swaddles, Milingimbi NT, Australia

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Ŋaṉmarra are wearables worn and made by Yolŋu women as skirts and baby swaddling to protect sleeping babies. Fringes are made for children's play while napping. Larger ŋaṉmarra are used as a cover during girls' coming-of-age ceremonies. The smell of the pandanus is a natural insect repellant and is believed to keep evil spirits away. More information is needed on the ethnographic history and current status of this craft practice.

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Master weaver Vilelava Vaipae from Lepuia'i Manono was instrumental in the revitalization of 'ie Samoa. As one of the last known weavers of the traditional 'ie Samoa, she accompanied the Women in Business Development Inc. (WIBDI) trainers to introduce the art to women around the nation.

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Le Samoa are sacred ceremonial wearables made with the pandandus plant. Today, young women weavers are joining efforts to revive this tradition in Samoan communities where there are more than 95 registered weavers. Some woven strips are just a millimeter wide, and the final mat can take up to a year to produce. The hems are interwoven with red and green bird feathers. Offered in wedding, funeral, and other social customs, these mats are an important part of kinship building and community pride. They are also used as currency.

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An image of Ojiya textiles being treated in the snow. The snow increases light reflection from the sun and accelerates ozone production, which helps to lighten the colours of the fabric. Image: Ojiya Chijimi: the amazing centuries-old Japanese craft that bleaches kimono textiles with snow, by Oona McGee for Sora News 24 online.

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Ojiya Snow Textiles, Ojiya, Niigata, Japan

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Ojiya Snow Textiles, Ojiya, Niigata, Japan

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Ojiya chijimi textiles (called Ojiya chijimi in Japanese) are made with ramie, a nettle family plant. Women are the primary practitioners and pass the tradition down from mother to daughter, however the tradition is under threat. The snowy region of Japan helps maintain the humidity necessary to produce the fabric and bleaches the material when laid on snow in the sun, giving it its subtle pallet. These unique fabrics are known for their yokosougasuri, designs composed of plain warps and splash-patterned, hand-painted wefts. Kimonos are made from this fabric, which has a bumpy texture, called shibo.

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Birch bark biting, by Cree Indigenous tribal member, Pat Bruderer. Image: Indigenous Arts Collective of Canada

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Pat Bruderer practices one of the oldest Cree (Canada, specifically Turtle Island) traditions, birch bark biting. She self-taught this tradition and has practiced for more than twenty years, educating the public about how this tradition was used for record-making and other craft practices such as quill work. She is also devoted to teaching young children, as this practice has interdisciplinary applications for teaching math, history, and culture. You can see Bruderer demonstrate this highly complex and labor-intensive practice through videos available online.

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Wichí  Indigenous chaguar fiber hand woven textile.

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In Georgia Southern University professor Rachel Green's article, "The Changing Role of Chaguar Textiles in the Lives of the Wichí, an Indigenous People of Argentina," Green illustrates the Feminist Seed Bank concept of climate and culture entangled endangerment: "Today, many Wichí are displaced from their lands in the Chaco, a process accelerated by provincial laws and deforestation due to agribusiness....One of the most important of their survival strategies is the gathering, processing, spinning, and weaving of chaguar. The intersection of ecosystem, necessity, and social demands lead to the creation of textile forms constructed with elaborate patterns for many different applications."

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Men traditionally wove izichumo grass baskets, but the tradition has recently transferred to women, who weave the utilitarian baskets for the Zulu community. Full of symbol and iconography, artist Beauty Ngxongo creates the baskets as a part of her artistic oeuvre. The colors are naturally derived: black is produced by boiling the ilala palms with the indigo plant. Sorgum leaves produce reds. A single basket used for water takes a month to complete. Finding utilitarian outlets for the craft is thus extremely difficult, as plastic has replaced hand-woven baskets.

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Hand woven bulrush mat by Indigenous artist, Wasson. Image: Record-Eagle/Michael Krebs

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Indigenous Bulrush Weaving, Traverse City, MI

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Indigenous Bulrush Weaving, Traverse City, MI

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Softstem bulrush (anaakanaashkoon in the Anishinaabe language) is a water shore plant in North America and Eurasia used for weaving and water protection and westland restoration efforts in the Indigenous communities of Michigan. They have various uses including floor and wall covering and ceremonial uses. An extremely complex and labor-intensive process, Indigenous artist, Wasson works with teams of volunteers to harvest the plant for this work. While bulrush plants are not endangered, wetlands in Michigan are.

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Photo and original design by Janine Connor.

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Straw work is an ancient craft found in the United Kingdom and Ireland practiced by a small group of artisans like Janine Connor, founder of May Queen Crafts. In recent history, women dominate the practice, but men used to make straw works in the field celebrating the harvest. The superior straw for this practice is grown locally by a farmer who only grows it for artisans. It has the thickness suitable to for the exquisite original designs created by Janine, some of which riff on ancient symbols and amulets. These works celebrate a life dedicated to the land: Janine was a park steward before founding her May Queen Crafts business, where she sells her original works. This practice is considered an endangered craft, as it is estimated less than 100 people practice it in the UK.

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Florence Jaukae, known as the Bilum Mama

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Bilum (“womb” string bag,) Papua New Guinea

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Bilum (“womb” string bag,) Papua New Guinea

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Florence preserves and promotes the Bilum tradition to improve women's lives in her country. Bilum are bags made from plant materials that vary depending on the biospheres within Papua New Guinea (woodlands and sea, for instance.) They are comprised of twisted and looped string in a tradition passed down through the generations of women. Florence was one of them. She used to twist string for Bilum as a child, which she learned from her family members.

Bilum tell the individual stories of women who make them and the communities in which they live. They are used at all stages of life to carry babies, food and even for burial. Florence teaches thousands of women throughout Papua New Guinea recording and implementing their traditional practices, and helping them evolve these traditions into contemporary possibilities for microindustry and self-reliance. These practices also represent distinct relationships between women and their environment.

Florence has served in leadership as councillor for a rural ward in Goroka and is a passionate advocate for women's rights. As a Bilum practitioner herself, she has explored the tradition in wearables.

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Eija Koski with one of her Himmeli sculptures

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Through an incredible interview with Eija, we learned about Himmeli, a rye straw-based sculptural process incorporating platonic solid designs into a cultural tradition full of meaning for crop fertility and the cycle of life. We learned they traditionally were made in saunas and burned during holiday festivities. Today, Eija has helped spread the tradition as far as Japan.

Their spectacular beauty and Eija's talent have captured the world's imagination. She started the interview by telling us about seeing Himmeli at her aunt's farm, a woman who worked the land by herself. The memory of these sculptures stayed with her always. Her partner is an organic rye farmer. This confluence is the nexus of her brilliant practice.

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Gardener, herbalist, and artist, Tamara Becerra Valdez interviewed Karin Stiehl, also an avid gardener, educator, and botany expert. Together, they discussed Karin’s practice of making jams with local fruits and berries, including Eberesche, Vogelberry in English (Latin: Sorbus aucuparia). The plant grows wild and also has a history as a herbal health aid. Foraging the berries for jams and liqueurs is a woman-centric practice, though Karin learned the tradition from her grandfather who maintained their family garden and served as head-teacher of their village. The plant is not endangered as much as overlooked due to the misinformation about the toxicity of the berries. At the same time, foraging has grown in popularity. During the interview, Karin also shared she and her sister used to forage and imagine making clothing for dolls from the large leaves of "Puppenblätter" (Latin: Rumex obtusifolius).

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In/Flux, cheesecloth, bioplastic, natural dyes. By Nnenna Okore.

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Nnenna Okore’s textile-inspired sculpture practice is rooted in African animistic practices, which helps her engage the message of the materials themselves in the production of artworks. In this featured work, In/Flux, she creates her own bioplastic from food-based materials which she incorporates into tactile, metaphoric artworks that entice audiences to consider what is at stake in climate collapse. Her slow, methodical and at times arduous process mirrors some of her experience working among women family members in Nigeria. Concerned with the loss of traditional culture and processes, Nnenna engages making practices that call for a future in balance with our biome on which all life depends.

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Alif Suleymanov’s son helping with red madder dyeing of wool. Alif is one of the masters keeping the tradition alive. Photo: Alif Suleymanov

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Red Madder Dye, Gapshima, Republic of Dagestan, Russia

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Red Madder Dye, Gapshima, Republic of Dagestan, Russia

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Dagestan red madder dye is used in the practice of silk thread embroidery, known as kaitag. Only three women still practice thread dyeing in a Dagestan village.

Through an incredible interview with artist and textile specialist, Raisat Ismailova oriental_antiques_gallery, FSB learned about this tradition, which has been threatened by the rise of synthetic dyes and global distribution. Raisat is keeping her kaitag tradition alive with her extended family through workshops and her personal practice, which reflect the unique histories, landscapes and beliefs of her people. Red madder is called "Boyakh" in one of the dialects of Dagestan—there are dozens.

Raisat shared the names of other rare Dagestan practices by women including Kumuk lacework and goldwork embroidery.

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Veronique Leriche Fishetti, showing her sculptures in her home in Queens via Zoom interview

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Haitian Plant Medicine and Vodou Tradition, Haiti and Queens, New York

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Haitian Plant Medicine and Vodou Tradition, Haiti and Queens, New York

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Veronique is a sculptor and plant worker who descends from generations of plant spiritualists and healers. Her artwork symbolizes many of the universal principles she knows from plants and their properties. Veronique represents an important element of the Feminist Seed Bank: she transplanted her Haitian knowledge to her home in Long Island, New York. This is typical of diasporas who bring their precious knowledge, and they evolve over time.

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Master felter, Tciala Idoizde with three of her hand-felted wall hangings in Tusheti, Republic of Georgia

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Natural Dye for Felted Rugs, Tusheti, Republic of Georgia

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Natural Dye for Felted Rugs, Tusheti, Republic of Georgia

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Felted rug making by women in Republic of Georgia is becoming more of an obscure art as they are very prone to wear and moth damage. Even more obscure is the natural dyes used to color the wool. Traditionally, the rugs featured colors ranging from chocolate browns, to ochre and sage green as they were sourced from the natural environment in the Eastern region of Tusheti, where this practice originated in Georgia. Today, natural dyes are nearly non-existent with the rise of synthetic colorants. This has also radically changed the aesthetic of rug practices featuring less natural colors in the artisan's palette.

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Image of Chiy Kuurchak taken at the State Museum in Bishkek, Kyrgystan

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Chiy Kuurchak (grass dolls,) Osh, Kyrgyzstan

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Chiy Kuurchak (grass dolls,) Osh, Kyrgyzstan

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In an interview with Altyn Kapalova, we learned about the art of Chiy Kuurchak, or grass dolls. These are a very rare intangible heritage practice, Altyn believes there is only one master left in Osh. Chiy kuurchak is a child's toy, and a protective amulet. Grandmothers would make chiy kuurchak for the newborn baby and attach the doll on the cradle to drive evil forces out. The chiy grass used for these dolls is now on a country protection list.

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Robert Chenciner, an ethnographer whose singular passion for Daghestani kaitag put it on the map, showing one of his collection

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Kaitag is an ancient textile craft practiced by women in Daghestan. Produced with silk thread often on silk fabric (silk is produced by silkworms that spin cocoons on mulberry trees) these textiles are used in birth, marriage, and death rituals. They are unusual in style, but also because they are only seen from the back side, as the front faces the human for which they are made. They often feature madder dyed silk thread. Madder grows well in Daghestan's heavy lime content soil. These practices are all endangered by changing seasonal patterns, and lack of transference from elder to next generation.

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Philippines featured artisans include hand papermaker and conservationist, Loreto Apilado and his micro-industry project collaborators as well as Phil-Am artist, Trisha Martin, who worked with the GREAT Women Project for her graduate thesis at Columbia College Chicago. Download this article in the catalog, Social Paper.

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Student-produced video documenting Sheroanawë Hakihiiwë's collaborations at Columbia College Chicago hand papermaking studio.

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Plant Medicine, Yanomami Community, Orinoco River, Venezuela

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Plant Medicine, Yanomami Community, Orinoco River, Venezuela

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Potter, Laura Anderson Barbata and Neysa Page-Lieberman  interviewed Sheroanawë Hakihiiwë in his village on the Orinoco river with his mother in law, a plant practitioner. Such woman-to-woman transmission of Yanomami heritage is extremely unusual. In 2011, Potter interviewed Hakihiiwë about his inspiration for the plant images in his work. He revealed for the first time his mother taught him the Yanomami symbol system appearing in his work, which derives in part from the onoto plant painting on babies and young children.

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Shapono - Circle of Stories: Works of Sheroanawë Hakihiiwë

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Black Aztec Corn, by Maggie Puckett. Corn handmade paper letterpressed seed packet.

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FSB contributor, Maggie Puckett is co-author with Potter of An Illuminated Feminist Seedbank, now in the Global Seed Vault mountain collection, curated by Fern Wickson.

Featured here is heirloom corn (Zea mays) varieties (Zapatista (Yellow, White, and Black), Black Aztec, Oaxacan Green Dent, Hopi Blue, Kulli Black Incan, Yurackallhua Giant Incan, Rainbow Sweet Incan, Seneca Red Stalker, Wade’s Giant Indian Flint, Bear Paw Popcorn) grown in Chicagoland community gardens. Some are threatened by cross-pollination with GMO varieties, destruction of community garden spaces, and lack of funding for the arts.

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Image of a woman breaking hemp fiber, Serbia, circa 1950s. Courtesy of the Ethnographic Museum in Belgrade, Serbia.

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Flax and Hemp Weaving, former Yugoslavia

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Flax and Hemp Weaving, former Yugoslavia

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Flax and hemp fibers were traditionally used for clothing and textiles ranging from clothing, to ritual cloths for baptisms. Both are far stronger than cotton, as well as cool in summer, and warm in winter. The process has more than a dozen distinct and labor-intensive steps, which has made it an increasingly obscure practice. Today, there is a small revival movement in flax and hemp production, but the traditional practice has vanished.

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Konoplja, trlica, Svrljig. 1927.g. Istočna Srbija

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An image of the Syrian tradition with the same materials, from UNESCO's intangible heritage protection program.

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Damask Rose-based Jam, Ratluk, and Syrup, Bosnia and Hercegovina

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Damask Rose-based Jam, Ratluk, and Syrup, Bosnia and Hercegovina

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Cultural expert, Aida Bičakčić interviewed Lebiba Džeko, ethnologist Curator, National Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina;  Berina Bećić botanist-biologist curator National Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina on these traditions now threatened by a wide-range of issues including climate change, urbanization, encroachment of invasive varieties of rose, loss of traditional practitioners and even the rise of synthetic rose flavor.

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"Long before white settlement in the Ridge, the Anishinaabe people (a group of culturally related indigenous peoples in the Great Lakes region) lived in and worked with the land. In 1933 under force, the Ojibwe, Ottawa, and Potawatomi tribes ceded their land to Chicago. Black ash basketry is an art form and tradition that is passed down orally from one generation to another among these indigenous people. By the 1970s, the black ash basketry tradition was nearly lost within the Pokagon Potawatomi tribe. In the exhibition Pokagon Potawatomi Black Ash Baskets: Our Storytellers at the Field Museum, I learned about the powerful women who are saving and promoting the practice. I discovered Agnes Rapp and Juliae Wesaw, co-founders of a co-op that promoted the central role of this cultural tradition as the foundation of Pokagon sovereignty. Thanks to this work, in 1994 the Pokagon Potawatomi won their right to federal recognition. Kelly Church’s Black Ash Baskets were also featured in the exhibition. Church is an artist, black ash seed saver, and activist working against climate change and invasive species to protect the black ash trees now facing extinction."--from an interview introduction by Melissa H Potter with basketmaker, artist, and activist, Kelly Church.

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An interview with Siynat Zholdosheva's grandmother, Turganbubu, one of the protectors of this ancient craft.

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Chiy (also the name of the steppe grass) is a nomadic tradition of rug and room divider making specially for yurts in Central Asia. On a simple, portable loom, wool-encased grass is woven together to create traditional patterns. The grass is threatened by climate crisis, and the practice is threatened by both the lack of grass available, and the lack of cultural knowledge transference.