Sharing food is an act of love. For carver, weaver, beader, and artist Andrea Wilbur Sigo (Squaxin Island, Skokomish), her family and culture's connection to food and gathering have both helped her in creating her collection of beautiful Great Ladder kitchenware.
"From a very young age, we are taught about harvest times for all of our natural resources," shares Andrea. "We are taught how important it is to gather food, but also how to process it, and store it, and barter it. And with the food, it's also a time to gather and enjoy each other's company, to tell stories and laugh and cry and work through life's day-to-day joys and sorrows."
The Great Ladder Serving Platter is a meaningful addition to your kitchen or table. Andrea's Great Ladder design is embossed in a central stripe, connecting you to your food and the land." 'The Great Ladder' is the entryway to the sky world: a world that is just as important to our people as the land world and the underwater world. The mountains are the ladder to this beautiful place; where our ancestors are watching over us and helping guide our choices."
In naming her kitchenware series after this special place, Andrea has infused each meal with meaning and connection to our ancestors as well as future generations. "The sky world is the land we all strive to go when our time comes. There, we will always be able to watch our babies grow, flourish, and lead with complete confidence knowing that we took steps for them to create paths that will become the highway of love and success for all."
Washington-born, globally produced.
Product Details:
- Designed by Andrea Wilbur Sigo (Squaxin Island, Skokomish)
- Glazed ceramic (white with natural rim)
- 16"(l ) x 11"(w) x 1.5"(h) / 40.64 cm x 27.94 cm x 3.81 cm
About the Artist: Andrea M. Wilbur-Sigo is a member of the Squaxin Island Tribe. She also has blood ties to several tribes here in Washington, from Skokomish, Nisqually, Puyallup, and Yakima to name a few. She has been blessed with many Elders in her life and was able to learn firsthand by family members born in the 1800’s. She prides herself on learning the pieces that her family and ancestors have left for her to learn from. She's taking those teachings, maintaining the old, all while still evolving into the mediums that are now accessible in today's time. "As Native people we have had to learn to adapt to new things all while remembering our roots. I can only hope that I leave footprints that are at least half as good as my ancestors left for me."
