Lot 74
Unidentified Chugach Artist
Lot 74 Details
Unidentified Chugach Artist
A RARE CHUGACH PEAKED BOWL COLLECTED BY GRACE NICHOLSON, FOURTH QUARTER 19TH CENTURY
wood, fish oils, brass wire
inscribed with Denver Museum of Art inventory number reading "1946.240"; a second unknown inventory number reading "Q.104.G"; affixed collectors tag inscribed "4 NW Coast"
2.25 x 14.25 x 7.75 in — 5.7 x 36.2 x 19.7 cm
Estimate $800-$1,200
Additional Images
Provenance:
Field collected by Grace Nicholson, Pasadena, CA
Deaccessioned from the Collection of the Denver Museum of Art, Denver, CO
Private Collection, Toronto, ON
Note:
Grace Nicholson (1877-1948) was a pioneering female art collector and dealer, specializing in First Nations basketry, weaving, and Chinese handicrafts in the United States. Nicholson was an active freelance collector for institutions, including the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian, The Denver Art Museum in Colorado, and the Field Museum of Chicago, Il.
Known for her progressive attitudes toward fair compensation of Indigenous makers, Nicholson sometimes developed supportive and long lasting relationships with the First Nations weavers and basketmakers with which she worked. Notably in one documented case she is known to have paid for eye surgery for one ailing basketmaker.
Ed Leibowitz, Token of Appreciation A grateful Pomo Indian’s gift to a friend exemplifies the brightest form of Native American artistry (Smithsonian Magazine, 2004), https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/token-of-appreciation-180940700/?no-ist