Weaving with Hedera Helix
A project created for the youth at the Marpole Oakridge Community Centre, made possible by a Creative Spark Vancouver Grant disbursed by ArtStarts in Schools and funded by the City of Vancouver.
From January through March 2018, 22 youth aged 10-18 participated in Weaving with Hedera Helix. Over 5 drop-in sessions, this project introduced new immigrant youth to the potential of basketry arts using locally harvested invasive English Ivy as material. Together, we transformed this invasive plant fibre into vessels that support the growth of native seeds while using basic basketry techniques in a sculptural context. We explored patterning and shape, and were introduced to the use of Red Cedar bark as material in traditional Coast Salish basketry. Nicole Preissl (Squamish, Stó:lō), a student at Emily Carr University, was my assistant for this project and contributed knowledge of Indigenous basketry techniques and history and gifted Red Cedar material for the youth to incorporate into their basket forms.
The project culminated with an installation of our forms outside at the Oak Park Field House, where they became sculptural planters that we collectively sowed with native pollinator-friendly seeds.
This project is an offshoot of a collaborative work with Chloe Hight, Natives and Invasives..., informed and inspired by the work and material research of eco-artist Sharon Kallis.
The project culminated with an installation of our forms outside at the Oak Park Field House, where they became sculptural planters that we collectively sowed with native pollinator-friendly seeds.
This project is an offshoot of a collaborative work with Chloe Hight, Natives and Invasives..., informed and inspired by the work and material research of eco-artist Sharon Kallis.
