Song of Sorrow
Object Details
- Artist
- Shan Goshorn, born Baltimore, MD 1957-died Tulsa, OK 2018
- Exhibition Label
- Shan Goshorn wrote Navajo, Lakota, and Kaw prayers of healing and well-being onto the brilliant blue splints of this basket. She intended the prayers for the generations of Native boarding school victims—children who were forcibly separated from their families and cultures to live in prison-like facilities. Notable are the words to a Cherokee memorial song: “We will remember your sacrifices. You will not be forgotten.”
- Goshorn also includes anti-Indigenous language that is woven into American culture. For example, the center white splints contain violent lyrics of the children’s song “Ten Little Indians.” Together, the juxtaposed messages form a resolute basket that carry Goshorn’s call for empathy, accountability, and amends.
- This Present Moment: Crafting a Better World, 2022
- Credit Line
- Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase through the Kenneth R. Trapp Acquisition Fund
- Copyright
- © 2021, Thomas Pendergraft
- 2015
- Object number
- 2021.32
- Restrictions & Rights
- Usage conditions apply
- Type
- Decorative Arts-Fiber
- Crafts
- Medium
- ink and acrylic paint on watercolor paper splints
- Dimensions
- overall_1: 9 in. × 8 1/2 in. × 8 1/2 in. (22.9 × 21.6 × 21.6 cm)
- See more items in
- Smithsonian American Art Museum Collection
- Department
- Renwick Gallery
- Smithsonian American Art Museum
- Topic
- Indian
- Object\other\basket
- Record ID
- saam_2021.32
- Metadata Usage (text)
- Not determined
- GUID (Link to Original Record)
- http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/vk70fb883fa-d17f-4ed3-ad57-1d47e8ee699f
Related Content
There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page .
International media Interoperability Framework
IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and media viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. Visit the IIIF page to learn more.