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Baskets |
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Stake
and Strand
Wicker or Ribbed |
Alison Fitzgerald
Hedgerow and willow basketmaker
from the Armagh countryside of Ireland. Personal
site. |
Bonnie Gale
Baby
Rattle
Backpack
Bushel
Basket
Camera
Basket
Fireside
Basket
Fishing
Creel
Laundry
Basket
Lunch
Basket |
Graham Glanville - Scotland
Traditional
Scottish baskets |
Joe Hogan
-Galway, Ireland
Round
and Squarework baskets |
Morten Simonsen - Denmark
Willow Cradle |
Steve Fuller and Simeon Siegan
Traditional English baskets |
Eva Seidenfaden - Denmark
Proprietor of
Vissinggaard |
Joanna Schantz - USA
Amana Colonies |
German Basketry at Korbmarkt
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Baskets
- Coiled |
O'odham Coiled
Willow Baskets
From the collection of the Arizona State Museum, three coiled willow, devil's claw and
cattail baskets. |
Paiute Miniature
Covered Basket
From the Illinois State Museum Collection. |
Pomo Fancy Baskets
Coiled baskets of willow, sedge embellished with feathers, beads or shells. |
Susan Billy
A California Pomo who is a teacher and leader in the revival of the coiled willow, sedge,
bulrush and redbud basketry craft. |
Paiute Miniature
Covered Basket
1920–1930 willow, devil's claw from the Illinois State Museum. |
Western Apache Coiled
Baskets
Basketry bowls, burden baskets, canteens and jars using native material such as sumac,
yucca, willow and devil's claw (martynia). From The Millicent Rogers Museum. |
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Coracles |
| Coracle at Mayo Abbey |
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Build Your Own Coracle |
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Furniture |
Bower Seat From English Hurdle
Buff willow hooded bower seat.
Breezy Willow
Furniture
Willow furniture maker from Chetwynd, British Columbia, Canada. |
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Garden
Furnishings and Fencing |
Conical Plant Climbers
Willow garden structures from English Hurdle as support to climbing garden plants.
Willow Compost Containers
From Christine Baker of The Dancing Trees
Julie
Starks
Environmental artist uses dried and live willows to create garden
furnishings, fencing and sculptural installations.
Airy willow domed house to furnish an elegant garden.
Garden Tunnel, Wigwam and Living Fence
From the Swedish Lillöpil site a variety of garden furnishing ideas.
Living Fence, Tunnel and Arch
At Swedish Gardening site Lillöpil.
Maypole Planter
and Withy arch
From English Hurdle.
English Hurdle
Woven fence or screen used as a privacy or decorative element.
Willow
Fence Construction
From Vissiniggaard.
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The European willow basket has similarities from country to
country, but each country seems to have developed a subtle variation. Joe Hogan
from Ireland offers traditional willow baskets in both round and squarework featuring the
natural color variations of numerous willow varieties. His Irish potato sifting
baskets in colorful barked willow, have strikingly distinctive base weaving.
Graham Glanville, a Scottish basketmaker makes and teaches a variety of strong
functional baskets in peeled white, buff or natural colors using coppiced willow which is
grown especially for basketmaking.
Morten Simonsen of Denmark creates ribbed willow cradles, beautiful sculpture, fish
traps and refined lawn furnishings. He teaches at Gallebjerggaard a farm and
holiday center.
Eva Seidenfaden of Denmark runs Vissinggaard, an International centre of willow work
and basketry where Mary Butcher of England and Anne Folehave of Denmark are both teachers.
German willow basketmaking has a strong continuing history. Many German willow
artisans participate in Korbmarkt an annual celebration of basketry in Lichtenfels,
Germany. The markets fill with basketmakers and chair seat weavers who demonstrate
their craft and sell their work in an expansive festival each Fall.
English basketmakers and willow artists are also busy creating traditional,
functional woven willow containers as well as garden furnishings, living fences, arbors,
tunnels and environmental installations. There is a thriving willow growing industry
where coppiced willow is grown specifically for basketry.
The European willow basketmaking tradition has found a footing in the United States and
Canada. Stake and strand round and squarework basketry is being practiced by a good
number of basketmakers today.
Heather Sanft and Ankaret Dean both from Canada are accomplished willow weavers and
teachers working in a European tradition.
Bonnie Gale who was born in England now lives in New York. She offers a nice
selection of finished willow baskets, tools, supplies and books for sale and regularly
teaches her craft.
The Amana Colonies willow tradition continues with the help of Joanna Schantz.
Other weavers such as Sandy Whalen used cultured willow to weave traditional basket
styles.
A separate tradition of willow basketmaking is attributed to the various Native
American tribes of the South Western United States. This group of baskets includes
examples of coiled basketry created with willow as one of the components. These
baskets are finely coiled with indigenous natural materials such as sedge, bulrush,
redbud, devil's claw and fern root over a foundation rod of willow. These baskets
frequently incorporate intricate geometric or figural patterns and are highly prized for
their artistic merit.
Willow rods make an excellent basketry material. Willow is woven by basketmakers
around the world into beautiful, functional and artistic forms, for all of us to use and
admire.
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