Baby bonnet

This whimsical bonnet both upholds and defies tradition. While honoring Native women’s talent for beautifying everyday objects, the artist breaks down barriers by employing a woman’s art form, beading, to depict people and animals, representational imagery usually associated with men. One side of the bonnet shows a young man wearing his courting blanket, holding a fan, and leading horses. The horses are a gift to the young lady beaded on the bonnet’s other side. She appears to have finished her domestic chores and be awaiting his arrival; near her are a bucket and a rack of meat drying. The colors reflect the artist’s taste and the wide variety of bead colors available in the 1990s.