Page 10 - Chehalis Tribal Newsletter - November 2023

10

CULTURE

Hazel Pete’s proud legacy

Exhibit highlights traditional, contemporary weaving by iconic family

South Puget Sound Community
College held the opening reception
for the 15th annual Native American
Art Exhibition honoring Hazel Pete’s
legacy and Chehalis tribal basketry on
Nov. 17.
The reception was at the Leonor R.
Fuller Gallery on the campus of SPSCC,
where art from Hazel Pete and her six
generations of master weavers is on
display through Dec. 8.
Organizers recognized Native
American lands and traditions and
said that the exhibit’s goals are to
share the history of the Salish people,
create relationships and enhance
representation.
Yvonne Peterson,
Hazel’s daughter,
Hazel Pete was the matriarch of a family of artists and master weavers. explained that
An exhibit highlighting traditional and contemporary items woven by basketry knowledge,
generations of the Hazel Pete Family is on display at the Leonor R. Fuller language and other
Gallery at South Puget Sound Community College through Dec. 8. social, spiritual and
religious protocols
are taken from all
tribes in the United
States and Canada
by laws and policies.
Yvonne shared
the history of the
legendary Hazel,
who lived from
1914-2003. She
was a boarding
school survivor
who dedicated her life to her Chehalis
people and culture. Hazel was sent to
multiple boarding schools throughout
her childhood but persevered to move
on and become a member of the first
graduating class at the Institute of
American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, New
Mexico.
Hazel earned a cultural teaching
degree and went on to teach at various
reservations and boarding schools.
She returned to the Chehalis
Reservation in the 1940s and started
a family. She had nine children and
raised them as a single parent. Hazel
also played a major part in raising
several of her grandchildren, passing on
teachings and traditions that still carry
on today.
The gallery is featuring other forms
of art influenced by Hazel Pete. Some of
the curated baskets haven’t been seen
since her passing in 2003.