Black Ash Baskets: A Local Collection
March 15 – June 29, 2025
On view in the Gothic Gallery, this exhibition features more than four dozen baskets by Native makers from the remarkable collection of Kirsten Buckstaff, a local resident. Her extensive collection primarily includes Black Ash works by Ho-Chunk makers, but it also holds pieces by Menominee, Ojibwe, and other Indigenous people.
A highlight of Buckstaff’s collection is four baskets by Mary Day, who lived in Oshkosh. Day was Prairie Band Potawatomi, and she learned basket-making from her Ho-Chunk mother-in-law. Working in her home, she crafted exquisite baskets with a variety of styles and purposes.
The Black Ash baskets in the exhibition are complemented by a handful of Native items made from other natural materials, including pine needles, jute, and Birch bark.
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