Gift of the Harris Family descendants, Port Orford, Oregon.

Gift of the Harris Family descendants, Port Orford, Oregon.

Gift of Gail Robertson Bergevin in memory of Margery Robertson.

Lillian Pitt is a local Native American artist whose work reflects her Wasco heritage. She did not become an artist until age 38 when she began working with clay. Now, Pitt works with a variety of materials and is a renowned sculptor, jeweler, and printmaker, as well as an advocate for Native American art. She is especially well known for her masks and other small clay figures that are inspired by the stories of her people that she was taught as a child. The petroglyphs along the Columbia River and other traditional Wasco images have also served as a major source of inspiration. In Wasco Totem, Pitt has created clay forms with traditional Wasco motifs that are similar to those found on baskets, beadwork, and stone carvings. These clay pieces are then assembled on a rough-hewn board and attached with brass nails and wire. The result serves as a monument to the Wasco people. The similarity of the image to a crucifixion also refers to the tremendous struggles that the Wasco and other Native Peoples have endured.

Gift of Joyce E. Osika.

Rasmussen Collection of Northwest Coast Indian Art; Gift of the Native American Art Council.

Gift of Grace F. and Bruce E. White.

Collection of the Portland Art Museum.

Gift of Richard S. Ogelsby.

Extremely large baskets were useful for storing plant materials that would later be processed into food. Lids on these storage baskets protected the materials inside from moisture and insects. This basket is typical of many Hupa baskets, with repetitive geometric motifs divided into horizontal registers encircling the entire basket.