Pat Courtney Gold facts for kids

Pat Courtney Gold (born January 22, 1939 – died July 11, 2022) was a talented Wasco Native artist. She was famous for her amazing basket weaving skills. Pat came from the Columbia River area in Oregon.

Before becoming a full-time artist, Pat studied mathematics and physics at Whitman College. She even worked as a mathematician for many years!

Pat used special plant fibers for her baskets. These included Dogbane, cattail, sedge grass, and parts of cedar trees. Her art often showed the natural world around the Columbia River. She mixed old designs like condors and sturgeon with new ideas like airplanes.

Pat also taught people about her culture. She shared her family's history and basket-making skills. Her beautiful art is now in museums worldwide. You can see her work at the High Desert Museum and the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian. She was even on the PBS show Craft in America in 2007.

Pat's Early Life

Pat Gold grew up on the Warm Springs Indian Reservation in Oregon. Her mother was a skilled beadworker. They often visited art museums together. In these museums, they saw baskets made by Pat's ancestors.

Pat finished high school in 1957. When she was a child, she didn't see anyone around her using traditional weaving. She never thought it would become her career.

Becoming a Basket Weaver

Pat worked as a mathematician for almost 17 years. Then, she decided to change her path. She wanted to help bring back the art and culture of her people.

In 1991, Pat started learning about "sally bags." These are flexible, round baskets. The Wasco-Wishram people used them to gather roots, medicines, nuts, and mushrooms. Pat studied old basket designs. She learned the stories they told. These stories included symbols of fishing nets and petroglyphs (ancient rock carvings).

She learned a special weaving method called "full turn twining." This is how the sally bags were made. Today, Pat Gold is one of the best experts and teachers of this weaving style. She helped keep this important art alive.

Awards and Honors

Pat Gold received many important awards for her work.

• In 2001, she won an Oregon Governor's Arts Award.
• She earned a Community Spirit Award in 2003.
• In 2004, she received a Cultural Capital Fellowship. Both of these were from the First People's Fund.
• In 2007, Pat received a National Heritage Fellowship. This is the highest honor in the United States for folk and traditional arts. It's given by the National Endowment for the Arts.