Minneapolis Institute of Art

Water Jar

Paiute artist

Date

c. 1910–50

Medium

Plant fibers

Culture

Paiute

Department

Arts of the Americas

Institution

Minneapolis Institute of Art

For thousands of years, Native people have lived in the dry deserts of the North American Southwest, where summer temperatures can reach 130 degrees Fahrenheit. Indeed, the Apache and Tohono O’odham, among other Native peoples, still thrive there. Indigenous knowledge of their environment historically helped them travel great distances with little water to collect certain plants and animals. They still make gathering baskets from local plant fibers, adorned with objects that create pleasing sounds when the baskets are used, Baskets woven so tightly they can store water are both utilitarian and artful, embellished with patterns. Paiute, United States, Americas

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