Bibliography
https://www.justletmebead.com/ 12/19/23
https://americanindian.si.edu/exhibitions/infinityofnations/plains-plateau/229197.html 12/19/23
https://collections.gilcrease.org/object/842899 12/19/23
https://pluralism.org/native-american-church 12/19/23
https://www.justletmebead.com/ 12/19/23
https://americanindian.si.edu/exhibitions/infinityofnations/plains-plateau/229197.html 12/19/23
https://collections.gilcrease.org/object/842899 12/19/23
https://pluralism.org/native-american-church 12/19/23
I first became interested in peyote stitch when I took a workshop with the artist Laura McCabe, who used the stitch to make elaborate bezels. I loved that the work could be worked off loom, that it could be formed around objects or as a stand alone, and that one could design a work while in the process of building it. As I did it more, and became curious about cultural appropriation, I desired to learn more about the history and origin of peyote stitch. In my explorations, I was surprised by both the variety of, disparate and absent information. Most of the sources that pop up quickly are people like myself, trying to construct time lines, names, methods and provenance of the stitch.
There are predictable patterns:
There are predictable patterns:
- Information and archive gaps in history, suggesting that too many major museums don't have adequate investments in artifacts or published information.
- Suggestions that the technology was passed from the Egypt
- As this is a craft and functions much on generational or person to person passing, there is is much variation as is has altered with generational additions, improvement, variations and work arounds. Peyote is used to name several stiches, including the one above, but also three drop or two drop versions that are not strong enough to make a stand alone fabric.
- The name comes from a cactus known for its hallucinogenic properties that is used in the Native American Church
- Contest over the use of psychotropics in religious practice with the Supreme Court, and implications/consequences of this decision
- Whether the term peyote stitch is inherently appropriation, and how one navigates the challenges of common use vs. culture and assimilation