Dark Kiva

Mary Giles preferred combining the traditional basket medium of waxed linen threads with hand-hammered metal components not typically used in basketry. Close inspection of this object’s interior reveals male figures fashioned from iron wire. They are meant to evoke Puebloan ritual gatherings which took place in subterranean circular structures known as kivas. The cultures and landscapes of the American Southwest were long-term sources of inspiration to Giles.