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The Collector(s) / Donor(s) Virginia Artis and her late husband, Jay, lived in Uganda for two years in the early 1970s. Jay, a member of the the Michigan State University Sociology Faculty, was teaching sociology and statistics at Makerere University in the country's capital, Kampala, under the auspices of the Rockefeller Foundation. Virginia taught pre-school at a self-help center in Kampala.She had some previous knowledge of the visual arts and music and became interested in the arts and craft traditions of Uganda. Jay and Virginia were given gifts, and they also purchased a variety of artifacts--musical instruments, baskets, furniture, figurative sculpture, clothing and jewelry. Many of these acquisitions were donated to the Museum in 1995. Collector(s) / Donor(s) Statement The Object(s) Though collected in Uganda, distinctive coil-sewn baskets with conical lids, like this one, are associated with the Tutsi people who primarily live in the countries of Rwanda and Burundi. Such baskets, referred to as agaseki, were formerly made by women associated with the Tutsi ruling elite. These baskets were made up of fine, tightly woven coils. This basket was produced in craft cooperative for sale to tourists, and is cruder in construction, displaying slightly larger coils; however, compared to most other basket traditions, the coiling is still quite fine and meticulously executed. The simple geometric patterns (zigzags, triangles and spirals) were formerly rendered using locally produced black or red dyes. Today, the same basic designs are used but the fibers are dyed with factory-made green, mauve or, as in this example, blue pigments. According to Georges Celis (1970: 41) baskets with undecorated lids were produced in Rwanda, while those with decorated lids, like this one, are from Burundi. Further Information Books and Articles Margaret Carey. "Five Miniature Baskets." Africa: The Art of a Continent, ed. T. Phillips, pp. 158-59. Munich: Prestel, 1995. Georges Celis. "The Decorative Arts in Rwanda and Burundi." African Arts 4 (1) 1970: 40-42. Kathleen Margaret Trowell. Tribal Crafts of Uganda. London: Oxford University Press, 1953. Internet Resourcesnone
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