About the birch bark pattern design
This original work has been digitalized to represent a one of a kind birch bark biting piece. The distinct lines in the fabric show the character of a birch tree.
A birch bark biting is a unique piece of Indigenous artwork. They are made from biting an image, using only the teeth, into a thin, single layer of birch bark harvested from the birch tree. Then, by carefully folding the bark, the pattern imagined is pressed into the birch bark, using only the teeth. Because each piece must be created individually, birch bark bitings are like people; no two are exactly alike!
“I honour the water and the bees. They are two things that everything on Mother Earth depend on and therefore are deserving of the utmost respect. Without them, nothing would exist.”
—Pat Bruderer
—Pat Bruderer
Pat Bruderer (Half Moon Woman) is one of the few knowledge keepers and expert practitioners of this ancient Indigenous art. She was born and raised in Churchill, Manitoba, Canada and is a member of the Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation. Half Moon Woman, is self-taught in the art form but was highly inspired by the work of Angelique Merasty of Flin Flon, Manitoba. Pat’s work can be found in museums, galleries, and private collections around the world.
