JoAnne made her first basket in 1984 while living in York, Maine. As she started gathering information on this craft, she learned the history of the basketmakers in the Mount Agamenticus area of York, where an entire community once made their livelihood from basketmaking. They would work all winter producing baskets, then sell them from horse-drawn carts as far south as Boston. That same year while giving a basketmaking demonstration at the York Historical Society, JoAnne met Raymond Weare from Cape Neddick, Maine, the last to learn from the Agamenticus basketmakers. Its tradition would have been long forgotten if not for Raymond Weare’s interest. He, in turn, was eager to share it with JoAnne. Raymond showed her how to select a proper ash tree, pound the growth rings off the tree, carve rims and handles with traditional tools, and weave a basket. The time involved in this process is considerable – preparing basket splints from one tree can easily take weeks. Her first baskets were very functional, work types (bushel, market and pack baskets) similar to those made by the Agamenticus basketmakers.

    JoAnne has refined her technique and weaves very detailed, intricate baskets that are inspired by Native Americans of the Northeast and the Southwest. She uses materials taken from the forest; black ash, pine needles, sweet grass and porcupine quills. JoAnne incorporates strong visual design elements, like the contrast of black and white or spiky surface decorations, to give each basket a presence - animism.

    JoAnne sells her baskets at the finest craft shows across the country. She recently won awards at the American Craft Exposition in Evanston, Illinois and the Smithsonian Craft Show in Washington, DC.  She won the Director's Choice Award at the Crafts at the Castle show where Boston Museum of Fine Arts Director Malcolm Rogers purchased a "porcupine" basket for the Museum's collection.

   JoAnne works in her studio at home in Saxtons River, Vermont.

EDUCATION   

            1978 BFA  University of New Hampshire.

            1984  Apprenticeship with basketmaker Raymond Weare, Cape Neddick, Maine.

AWARDS

            2007, 2002, 2000, 1999, 1998 Smithsonian Craft Show Awards.  

            2004 Award of Achievement, American Craft Council, Baltimore.

            2003 Niche Award.

            2001 Crafts at the Castle, Boston, Best of Show.

            2000 ACC Craft Show Atlanta, Honorable Mention Award.

            1999 League of NH Craftsmen, Annual Juried Exhibit, Judge's Choice Award.

            1998 Crafts at the Castle, Boston, Director's Choice Award.              

            2001, 2000, 1998, 1997 American Craft Exposition, Best Use of Materials Award.

            1997 Philadelphia Museum of Art Craft Show, 2nd Prize.           

            1997 Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts, Award of Excellence.

            1997 League of New Hampshire Craftsmen, Booth Award.

            1996 100 American Craftsmen, Best New Exhibitor/John Whitmore Award.

COLLECTIONS

            2006  Museum of Fine Arts, Houston.

            2006 Arkansas Art Center, Little Rock, Arkansas.

            2004 Fuller Craft Museum, Brockton, Massachusetts.

            2003  Worcester Art Museum, Worcester, Massachusetts.

            2002 Tipperary Olympic Memorial Committee, Nenagh, Ireland.

            2002 Charles A Wustum Museum, Racine, Wisconsin.

            2002 Sonny & Gloria Kamm Collection

            1999 Peabody-Essex Museum, Salem, Massachusetts.

            1998 Boston Museum of Fine Arts.

            1997 Wheaton College, Madeline Farnsworth Collection, Norton, Massachusetts.

BOOKS & ARTICLES

            "Basketry with a Point", Peabody-Essex Museum Connections, March/April 2007.

            "500 Baskets", Lark Books, 2006.

            "Teapots; Makers & Collectors", Dona Meilach, 2005.

            "Crafts Business", March/April 2005.

            "The Art of Basketry", Kari Lonning, 2000.

            "Baskets: Tradition and Beyond", Leier, Peters and Wallace, 2000.

            " Beautiful Things", Guild.com, 2000.         

            "Shuttle, Spindle and Dyepot", Spring 1999.

            "The Crafts Report", April 1999.

 LECTURES

            2006 Lecture, Divergent Directions in Fiber, SOFA, Chicago, Illinois.

            2006 Lecture and workshop, National Basketry Organization Conference, Athens, Ohio.

            2005 Artistic Insights, Illustrated Lecture, Smithsonian's Renwick Gallery, Washington, DC.

            2003 Lecture, Textile Study Group, New York City.

            2003 Lecture, Fiber Art Center, Amherst, Massachusetts.

            2002 Lecture and workshop, National Basketry Organization Conference, New Mexico.