Preserving knowledge from “long ago” at The Museum at Warm Springs

Tradition is treasured at The Museum at Warm Springs. Thanks in part to an Oregon Cultural Trust grant award, the museum is launching the third year of its "Tł'aawxmamiyai - For Everyone - The Knowledge from Long Ago" workshop series, focused on Traditional Indigenous arts and crafts practices.

Since 2022, Warm Springs tribal members have participated in more than 16 different workshops, learning how to make jingle dresses, Columbia river plateau vests, tule mats, and more. Workshops are led by master traditional artists and cover all aspects of the creative process: from venturing out into the natural world to gather materials to returning to the classroom for lessons in artisanship.

Executive Director Elizabeth Woody says it's essential to "pass along important components" of the culture of the local Warm Springs, Wasco, and Paiute peoples. The tule mat workshop - which involved gathering tule reeds to craft into mats - was especially popular, says Woody. With funding from the Cultural Trust, the workshop might now become an annual tradition.

"The goal is to teach these artistic and cultural traditions to a whole new generation of Warm Springs Tribal artisans," says Woody, "so they will be preserved and passed down to future generations."

Story by Max Tapogna