Gainesville

Tears of the Giraffe: Basketry of Botswana

About the Exhibition

For hundreds of years, baskets have been among the most famous of Botswana’s handcrafted utilitarian goods. Now an integral part of the culture these baskets, primarily made by women of the Bayei and Hambukushu tribes who migrated from Angola, have evolved and become more intricately designed. Botswana baskets have a high commercial value and are marketed worldwide, providing much needed income for the women who make them. "Tears of the Giraffe: Basketry of Botswana,” includes highlights from a collection that Frank Merillat and Dr. Sandra Russo have been assembling for the past ten years.
 
Frank Merillat first became interested in baskets while traveling to Botswana with his wife, Sandra Russo, for her work with the International Center of the University of Florida. During subsequent trips, he began visiting the various cooperatives surrounding the Okavango Delta where the baskets are made, eventually meeting and getting to know several of the basket makers represented in the exhibit. “Tears of the Giraffe” features a wide range of baskets in the Merillat/Russo collection and includes a few contextual photographs and artifacts.


Traditional Symbolic Patterns in Botswana Basketry

A number of symbolic patterns appear in Botswana basketry. Some symbols come from Botswana legends, such as the “Tears of the Giraffe,” which represents the tears and sorrow of the animal before it was killed during a hunt. Others, like “Flight of the Swallow” may represent an omen of good fortune since these birds fly in a triangular pattern before it rains. While some other symbols are derived from observation of how an animal moves, such as “Running Ostrich,” or the patterns of the animal skins, such as “Forehead of the Kudu” and “Forehead of the Zebra”.

You may recognize some of the symbols below in the exhibition. Some baskets may include a combination of more than one symbol.

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May 11 to August 20, 2010
Grinter Gallery
University Galleries
Grinter Hall, University of Florida