Coast to Coast
If you’ve followed along in the magazine this year and last, you’ll know we have done several region guides. Last year we focused on the Northeastern Woodlands, and then this year we covered the Great Plains in April/may. In this issue we travel to the Northwest Coast. It has been an illuminating experience diving into different regions and exploring some of the artists and artwork that have emerged from them. Over the last year I’ve found myself glued to my screen reading some truly remarkable articles from our writers, many of them guest contributors who are experts in their field. I just keep thinking how lucky we are to work with so many great people, but also how lucky our readers are to have this much information at their fingertips.
In our Northeastern Woodlands section we did a deep dive on Wabanaki basketry, as well as a write-up on basket maker Jeremy Frey and some of the struggles those basketry artists are facing as ash trees are destroyed by an invasive bark beetle. In our Great Plains section, we had a writer explore the history and importance of Hi-line beadwork, riveting material that really helped establish an important period of history in the region. This month we have a packed lineup too: a piece on tech innovations in Northwest Coast jewerly, an article on Chilkat blankets (Naaxéin), and several articles that explore the formline style that is so prevalent in the Northwest.
I hope you’ve enjoyed jumping around the country with us to highlight some of these regions. We want to expand our region guides to include other areas, and we’d love to hear from you about where we should go next.