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Home PageFINGERWEAVING EXHIBITED AT VAN METER STATE PARK THROUGH DECEMBER
JEFFERSON CITY, MO., NOV. 21, 2007 – Examples of the American Indian craft of fingerweaving are featured in a temporary exhibit at Van Meter State Park near Miami, Mo. Sponsored by the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, the exhibit will be on display through December in Missouri’s American Indian Cultural Center at the park and is free and open to the public.
William Stogsdill, Ph.D., an enrolled member of the Delaware tribe of western Oklahoma, and Robert Austin, author of a manual on fingerweaving, have loaned the park some fingerweaving articles of apparel. On exhibit is a Delaware dance set including a sash and garters. Also on display are a shoulder bag, shoulder sashes and hatbands. They are woven in a variety of colored yarn, some beaded in both warp face and interface weaving styles.
There are several different kinds of fingerweaving. Interface or net weaving is a true American Indian craft. American Indians, circa 1715, borrowed warp face weaving from the French. Interface weaving began to decline after the warp face became fashionable and was adopted by the northeast and northern tribes. The warp face allowed for more patterns. As beads were added, the weaving became even more decorative.
Van Meter State Park is located 12 miles northwest of Marshall on Highway 122. Missouri’s American Indian Cultural Center is currently open Thursday through Sunday and holiday Mondays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
For more information, contact the park at 660-886-7537 or the Missouri Department of Natural Resources toll free at 800-334-6946 (voice) or 800-379-2419 (Telecommunications Device for the Deaf). For more information about Missouri state parks and historic sites, visit the Web at www.mostateparks.com.
