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Quillwork is a form of textile embellishment traditionally practiced by Indigenous peoples of North America that employs the quills of as an aesthetic element. Quills from bird feathers were also occasionally used in quillwork.
Cheyenne oral history, as told by Picking Bones Woman to George Bird Grinnell, says quilling came to their tribe from a man who married a woman, who hid her true identity as a buffalo. His son was also a buffalo. The man visited his wife and son in their buffalo home and while among the buffalo, the man learned the art of quilling, which he shared with the women of his tribe.Penney and Horse Capture 119 The crafting society of the highest esteem was the Quilling Society. The quillers were a select group of elite women. Joining the Cheyenne Quilling Society was a prestigious honor for Cheyenne women. The Cheyenne believe that the highest virtue and aspiration is the seeking of knowledge. Their main spirit or deity is Heammawihio (The Wise One Above) who possesses his power through wisdom. All spirits gain power through their knowledge and their ability to share it with the people. The rituals of the crafting societies are structured with a mentor instructing an apprentice in the skills of the craft. The process and ritual that accompanied the production of these crafts (especially quilled crafts) constituted a ceremony of sacred significance. In this way the crafting societies added the additional element of acquired knowledge and experience, which the Cheyenne highly regarded and considered sacred. This would create a system where the people are seeking to possess a piece of the knowledge and skill of the crafter in tangible terms, and this creates a heightened value on the imagery itself. The craft is their act of knowledge seeking, and as such, was a sacred act. In this way, the women with more experience gained greater status in the crafting society. The master and apprentice roles were always present in the crafting societies, as the older women would always have more knowledge due to their lifetime of dedication to the craft. Upon entering the Society, women would work first on quilling moccasins, then cradle board, rosettes for men's shirts and , and ultimately, hide robes and backrests.
The Blackfoot Native American tribe in the Northwest region of North America also put much significance on women who did quillwork. For the Blackfoot, women doing Quillwork had a religious purpose to it such as wearing special face paint that consisted of yellow ochre and animal fat which would be mixed in the palm of one's hand and then a 'V' marking would be made across the forehead to the nose; This face paint was meant to protect the women who was participating in quillwork and would always be done before doing so. Red paint would then be used to draw a vertical line from the bridge of the nose to the forehead and altogether this would resemble the foot of a crow. They would also wear sacred necklaces each time they did quillwork as another form of protection. When a woman would become too old to continue her craft she would have a younger woman become an initiate, generally a relative, so that the craft could be passed on. Being a woman who made quillwork in the Blackfoot tribe held major importance as the few women who did quillwork would choose who would become the next to assume the craft of quillwork. After being initiated, the young woman would be expected to craft a moccasin and would then take it and place it on top of a hill as a form of offering to the sun.
The Arapaho and Odawa tribes also had religious significance for women in Quillwork as their works would represent sacred beings and connections to nature. Colors and shapes also had unique meanings allowing for diverse and unique designs carrying many cultural or religious meanings. The Odawa tribe in particular used many of the same colors as the Blackfoot tribe with the addition of white, yellow, purple, and gold.
Porcupine quills often adorned rawhide and tanned hides, but during the 19th century, Wiigwaasi-makak were a popular trade item to sell to European-Americans among Eastern and Great Lakes tribes. Quillwork was used to create and decorate a variety of Native American items, including those of daily usage to Native American men and women. These include clothing such as coats and moccasins, accessories such as bags and belts, and furniture attachments such as a cradle cover.
The quills can be flattened with specific bone tools or by being run through one's teeth. Stitching awl were used to punch holes in hides, and sinew, later replaced by European thread, was used to bind the quills to the hides.
The four most common techniques for quillwork are Applique, embroidery, wrapping, and loom weaving.Feest 215 Appliquéd quills are stitched into hide in a manner that covers the stitches. In wrapping, a single quill may be wrapped upon itself or two quills may be intertwined.
Quills can be appliquéd singly to form curvilinear patterns, as found on Odawa people pouches from the 18th century.Vincent 15 This technique lends itself to floral designs popularized among northeastern tribes by Ursulines Wyandot people women excelled at floral quillwork during the 18th and 19th centuries.Vincent 24
Plains Indians quillwork is characterized by bands of rectangles creating geometrical patterns found also in Plains painting.Feest 140 Rosettes of concentric circles of quillwork commonly adorned historical Plains men's shirts, as did parallel panels of quillwork on the sleeves. These highly abstracted designs had layers of symbolic meaning.
The Red River Ojibwe of Manitoba created crisp, geometric patterns by weaving quills on a loom in the 19th century.Vincent 28 and 43
The art form is very much alive today. Examples of contemporary, award-winning quillworkers include Juanita Growing Thunder Fogarty, (Sioux-Assiniboine) artist;Durbin 279 and 304 Dorothy Brave Eagle (Oglala Lakota) of Denver, Colorado;Melmer, David. "Quillwork: Lakota Style." Indian Country Today. 22 Sept 2004. Kanatiiosh (Akwesasne) of St. Regis Mohawk Reservation; Native American Quillwork. Native Languages of the Americans. 2008 (retrieved 19 Feb 2009)Roberts, Kathaleen. Native Costume. Journal Santa Fe. 3 Nov 2008. Retrieved 19 Feb 2009. Sarah Hardisty (Dene) of Jean Marie River, Northwest Territories; Leonda Fast Buffalo Horse (Piegan Blackfeet) of Browning, Montana;, Leonda Fast Buffalo Horse: Quillwork. Montana Arts Council. (retrieved 19 Feb 2009) Melissa Peter-Paul, Mi'kmaw of Epekwitk/Prince Edward Island, and Deborah Magee Sherer (Piegan Blackfeet) of Cut Bank, Montana.Horse Capture 118-119
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