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TERI ROFKAR
TLINGIT
ALASKA, USA
BASKETMAKER, RAVEN’S TAIL WEAVER
VISITING ARTIST, 2003
While I weave
in an ancient
traditional
technique, I
am alive
and engaged
in today’s
contemporary
world.
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I was introduced to Tlingit weaving as a
child, but it wasn’t until the mid-1980s that I
made a commitment to become the best
basket-weaver I could. I was fortunate. My
journey took me into the backrooms of the
Smithsonian, American Natural History,
University of Pennsylvania, Metropolitan, and
Brooklyn museums as a Visiting Artist in 2003.
It was an awakening! I still look at my notes
and refer to my photos–they contain so many
inspiring ideas just waiting to be woven.
When I visit artifacts, it is as if I am visiting
old friends; they challenge me always! But
I am able to experience the life these pieces
hold today–humor and visual trickery,
heavy use, and even sorrow. I was looking at
old baskets in one museum on the East
Coast, thinking of the time and place they
were collected. The design and style of
weaving give them a high probability of
being my grandmothers’ and great-grand-
mothers’ baskets. These baskets don’t
speak only of the past, but reflect an intimate
relationship between today, tomorrow,
and yesterday. It is up to me to add my
voice, a song for the future. Not over the
soft voices of the past, but in harmony, as
a chorus becomes strong with new life.