HIST 4916B: “Basket, Bead and Quill”: Indigenous Customary Arts

HIST 4916B: “Basket, Bead and Quill”: Indigenous Customary Arts
Fall 2025

Instructor: Alexandra Kahsenni:io Nahwegahbow

Introduction: Titled after an essay by Kanien’kehá:ka curator Deborah Doxtator—written for a pivotal 1996 exhibition of the same name at the Thunder Bay Art Gallery—this course traces the histories of Indigenous customary arts, with a focus on work from the Northeast and Great Lakes regions. Topics explored throughout the term include Indigenous perspectives and concepts of artmaking and craft, histories of collecting and display, the politics of value, materiality, care for historical Indigenous belongings, the tourist trade, repatriation/rematriation, and contemporary Indigenous practices in dialogue with the past.

Class Format: In-person seminar once per week in a three-hour block.

Assessment: TBD

Text:  Texts will be provided on Ares or the course site.

Questions? Please email: Alexandra.Nahwegahbow@carleton.ca