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Shaker Baskets
While nearly all 19th-century Shaker religious communities used baskets in their daily life, the primary basketmaking communities were in New England and New York state, where the trees needed from the large, sturdy baskets were indigenous. What distinguishes Shaker baskets from myriad other utilitarian pieces made for farm and commercial purposes during the 19th century is that they were task-oriented—designed for a particular use in a Shaker community.
The straightforward art of the Shaker baskets were based on traditional forms and techniques, but their makers showed exceptional care in perfecting the handles, rims, uprights, and weavers. The Shaker basketmaking process was highly organized, involving many small jobs to make each basket. Woodsmen managed the forests and harvested and transported the brown ash trees, toolmakers designed planning and slitting tools, cabinetmakers developed body molds that standardized basket forms, and Shaker sisters wove the baskets according to formulas.
fter 1835, Shakers stopped making their own customized varieties of working baskets and began making scaled-down versions called “fancy baskets” exclusively for sale to the outside world in order to bring income into their dwindling communities. The Shaker fancy baskets are the most identifiable of all Shaker baskets, and they’ve become very expensive. Since the makers or the home community rarely signed them, attribution can be difficult. Adding to the confusion is the fact that the Shakers also bought baskets made elsewhere for their own use. So baskets seen in or around a Shaker village are often mistaken for “Shaker-made” as opposed to “Shaker-owned.”
The straightforward art of the Shaker baskets were based on traditional forms and techniques, but their makers showed exceptional care in perfecting the handles, rims, uprights, and weavers. The Shaker basketmaking process was highly organized, involving many small jobs to make each basket. Woodsmen managed the forests and harvested and transported the brown ash trees, toolmakers designed planning and slitting tools, cabinetmakers developed body molds that standardized basket forms, and Shaker sisters wove the baskets according to formulas.
fter 1835, Shakers stopped making their own customized varieties of working baskets and began making scaled-down versions called “fancy baskets” exclusively for sale to the outside world in order to bring income into their dwindling communities. The Shaker fancy baskets are the most identifiable of all Shaker baskets, and they’ve become very expensive. Since the makers or the home community rarely signed them, attribution can be difficult. Adding to the confusion is the fact that the Shakers also bought baskets made elsewhere for their own use. So baskets seen in or around a Shaker village are often mistaken for “Shaker-made” as opposed to “Shaker-owned.”
Latest page update: made by Anonymous, May 29 2007, 7:46 PM EDT
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