JANUARY 3, 2025
Submissions open
May 31, 2025 8pm PDT
Submissions close
Week of July 14, 2025
Finalists Announced
September 27, 2025
Exhibition and voting opens
October 17, 2025
Voting closes
October 18, 2025
Winners announced
$3,000.00
Size
14" x 13.6" x 15.2"
Medium
Black ash, birch bark, porcupine quills, sweetgrass
Sasap (jellyfish) combines two traditional Mi’kmaw artforms: black ash splint basketry and porcupine quill art. The artist recently began incorporating basketry to quillwork. All material was sustainably harvested and processed by the artist. The porcupine quillwork is inspired by patterns in 19th century quilled chairbacks. The intricate geometric design reflects how Mi’kmaw seek balance in the world. Black ash is used to bind sweetgrass and to connect it to the basketry base, effectively bridging the two artforms. The piece evolved from the original design into Sasap, as the artist responded to the movement of the weaving process.
1 in stock
Cheryl SimonDartmouth, Nova Scotia
Cheryl is a proud Mi’kmaq woman from Epekwitk (Prince Edward Island). She has been a porcupine quiller for eighteen years and has had numerous apprentices. She recently became a basket maker after undertaking an apprenticeship with an Elder from her community and is working to incorporate porcupine quillwork into her basketry. Cheryl harvests her materials in accordance with traditional Mi’kmaw protocols. Cheryl is an assistant professor of law at the Schulich School of Law at Dalhousie University, where she uses quillwork to teach Indigenous law. She lives with her husband and their two children in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia.