"African Tower" and "Porkypod" by Jill Choate (copyright Jill Choate)
Artist’s Statement: My baskets begin as a gift from the forest. The antler’s natural curve, coloration, and texture are taken into consideration and ignite the potential for a creative vessel to emerge.
Even though some basket designs may be similar, each basket is as unique unto itself as a fingerprint. Each creation is woven with the boreal forest in mind. A branch, the smell of willow, brightly colored leaves, the wind passing through trees, snow sifting from the sky. Using the inspiration of these simple gifts results in a vessel of woven nature. The designs are worked around the uniqueness of the antler as a focal point, while the weave is used as a drape to highlight its energy.
Medium: Basketry. My primary focus is antler and how to build a vessel around that form. I think working with antler always keeps your mind fresh for new ideas. It broadens your horizons and makes you think beyond conventional basketry.
Artistic Resume:
- Jill’s work has been featured in several national exhibitions
- Her basketry is featured in the book, “Baskets, a Book for Makers and Collectors”
- Awarded Best in Round Reed Construction with “Hornocopia”, Northeast Basketmakers and Guilford Handcraft Center exhibit “Baskets 2002: New Perspectives on an Ancient Tradition”
- Key note speaker at the Indiana Basketmakers Convention and regularly tours the lower 48 states during the summer months
Additional information: I made my way to Alaska in 1984 as a single woman with a love of the north. I now reside with my family in the bush community of Trapper Creek, approximately 150 miles north of Anchorage. The Choate Homestead is accessible by snow machine in winter, by 4-wheeler in the summer, and is equipped with all the modern “bush” conveniences – like a hand pump and an outhouse. Living in the shadow of Denali with a salmon stream in the front yard and moose and bear for neighbors makes up for any lack of modern conveniences. I divide my day between mushing my sled dogs and creating some exceptional basketry.
***************
