Crafting Lives
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Anthropologists studying the Americas have traditionally assumed that there is a strong division between households and public spaces. According to this perspective, domestic areas and the activities occurring within them are relatively private. Given that the activities done in domestic spaces are often assumed to be “women’s work,” the labors of women have been seen as spatially and socially segregated to this secondary, “hidden” context.
But these assumptions may reflect our own ideas more than those of indigenous peoples. Archaeological and historical research suggests that Native American women have had important community roles. Whether or not they are associated with homes, the influences of “domestic” crafts (such as pottery, cooking, making figurines, and weaving) have long influenced the public sphere. While the evidence tells us that such crafting often is the work of women, it is our interpretations of the meanings of such labor that need to change.
In this exhibition, we explore material products of women’s crafting from the American Southwest and Mesoamerica. As you learn about women’s work in these regions, consider how their labor contributes to economies. What roles has crafting played in diverse social and spatial contexts? Have our own ideas about gender and the domestic versus public spheres of social life led us to misrepresent the past?
But these assumptions may reflect our own ideas more than those of indigenous peoples. Archaeological and historical research suggests that Native American women have had important community roles. Whether or not they are associated with homes, the influences of “domestic” crafts (such as pottery, cooking, making figurines, and weaving) have long influenced the public sphere. While the evidence tells us that such crafting often is the work of women, it is our interpretations of the meanings of such labor that need to change.
In this exhibition, we explore material products of women’s crafting from the American Southwest and Mesoamerica. As you learn about women’s work in these regions, consider how their labor contributes to economies. What roles has crafting played in diverse social and spatial contexts? Have our own ideas about gender and the domestic versus public spheres of social life led us to misrepresent the past?
