A New Documentary from Mimbres Fever Productions
STORYTELLERS
Roberta "Bobbie" Conner
Umatilla-Cayuse-Nez Perce ~ Tribal Historian
Director - Tamástslikt Cultural Institute
"That collection of blankets to me is precious because they represent people no longer with me.
But they can still warm my heart."
Bunky Echo-Hawk
Yakama-Pawnee
Photo by Ryan Redcorn
"We’re conceived in these blankets and when we’re born we’re wrapped in these blankets and held in these blankets and all throughout our life we’re warmed in these blankets and gifted these blankets when we reach these milestones throughout our life. And as we get old and pass away we’re wrapped in these blankets when we’re returned to the earth."
Deborah Jojola
Pueblo of Isleta and Jemez
"I love the blanket. I held it and showed my dad who I know was looking upon me, and told him ‘I hope I make him proud’, and my ancestors. I do things from my heart and with the utmost respect that I can possibility do as an artist. I thanked him for the gifts of being able to see things like this and to depict them in such a way that people can wear and utilize in ceremonies and it becomes very purposeful."
Marie Watt
Seneca, German Scottish
"I think wool blankets are blankets that have longevity in our lives, they’re mended, they’re passed down, they’re in our closets, they are sometimes in the back of our cars. Maybe our lives are bookends in which these blankets kind of accompany our journey, and in a way we imprint on the blanket, they start to take on the shape of the bodies that inhabit them."
Barry Friedman
Blanket Historian
"Women's blankets are fringed. They are particularly used as dance blankets. The fringe flying around as a woman dances adds to the excitement of the dance. The men's blankets have a simple felt binding and they're referred to as a robe. And they have been since the 1890's."
