Breathe

“Triple threat”

Penelope S. Minner, Turtle Clan, Seneca, Allegany Territory, WNY, Salamanca, NY

Graphic designer, Traditional artist, black ash basketry, beadwork and corn husk

Black ash splint, sweet grass, muslin, leather ties, cotton thread

Through my cousin, Midge Dean-Stock, I came to traditional basket making later in life, starting in 1998. It was another opportunity to work with my hands and learn more of our culture. I enjoyed learning the process. I dedicated myself more fully to my art in 2008 due to changes in school, work and family. It became more of my focus and I even began teaching, doing presentations, and sharing this beautiful art. A friend had once referred to me as a triple threat: I smiled and thought I was never a threat; I just enjoy doing my art.

Here’s a mask woven from black ash splint and lashed with sweet grass, lined with treaty cloth and leather ties. I took this apart three times, set it aside, walked away and came back to it. It was my challenge piece. Some background for some folks:

The Two Row Wampum Treaty is represented on the left side of the woven mask by the two purple splints. The treaty, enacted in 1613, is one of the oldest treaties between the Iroquois people and Dutch settlers in the “New World.”

The fundamental Haudenosaunee position was that, “You say that you are our Father and we are your Son. We say ‘We will not be like Father and Son, but like Brothers.’ This wampum belt confirms our words. Neither of us will make compulsory laws or interfere in the internal affairs of the other. Neither of us will try to steer the other’s vessel.”

The Haudenosaunee people consider the treaty to still be in effect. Tradition states: “As long as the Sun shines upon this Earth, that is how long our Agreement will stand; Second, as long as the Water still flows; and Third, as long as the Grass Grows Green at a certain time of the year. Now we have Symbolized this Agreement and it shall be binding forever as long as Mother Earth is still in motion.”

On the right side of the mask is a single pink flower and purple curls: these were added to symbolize the virus above us and the water below. We are in a turbulent time in our lives and we need to be vigilant in our actions as human beings. We can steer our own vessels and still be together. Your choices and actions will be yours alone, but they impact others on the path. Be wise in the choices you make as you go forward.

Johnny Cash did a song about the Seneca’s in the Kinzua era, here on the Allegany. I’ve attached a link for you, just in case you want to hear the story. My folks and grandparents were active in the protest of this timeframe. It was built before I was born. But at least their voices were heard through this song writer and artist.