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UBC Theses and Dissertations
UBC Theses and Dissertations
Southern Yukon beadwork objects : a narrative of reclaiming culture Johnson, Ingrid
Abstract
This thesis concerns the process and outcomes of my research involving a group of Southern Yukon beadwork objects, a project carried out on behalf of the MacBride Museum in Whitehorse, Yukon, in 1993. I studied the objects themselves, researched museum documentation of them, and subsequently interviewed several women elders/beadworkers. In the thesis I examine several ways of studying and researching material culture and provide an analysis of these methods. Looking at objects in different ways tells us something about the nature of them but raises new questions which I address here. Reviewing museum collections records tells us more about the institution and the institutional lives of the objects than about their original context and meaning. Asking elders about the objects inspires them to speak about many seemingly unconnected topics: history, personal and mythical stories, and long ago life and times. An underlying theme which emerged in interviews with elders was their commentary on cultural and societal change within the First Nations community and how this has affected the process of learning for younger generations. I argue that beadwork objects can be best understood as learning and teaching tools for First Nations people of every generation, that their creation and essence are linked to every aspect of the culture, and their reclamation cannot properly happen without observance of all of these connections.
Item Metadata
Title |
Southern Yukon beadwork objects : a narrative of reclaiming culture
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Creator | |
Publisher |
University of British Columbia
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Date Issued |
1996
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Description |
This thesis concerns the process and outcomes of my research involving a
group of Southern Yukon beadwork objects, a project carried out on behalf of the
MacBride Museum in Whitehorse, Yukon, in 1993. I studied the objects
themselves, researched museum documentation of them, and subsequently
interviewed several women elders/beadworkers.
In the thesis I examine several ways of studying and researching material
culture and provide an analysis of these methods. Looking at objects in different
ways tells us something about the nature of them but raises new questions which I
address here. Reviewing museum collections records tells us more about the
institution and the institutional lives of the objects than about their original context
and meaning. Asking elders about the objects inspires them to speak about many
seemingly unconnected topics: history, personal and mythical stories, and long ago
life and times. An underlying theme which emerged in interviews with elders
was their commentary on cultural and societal change within the First Nations
community and how this has affected the process of learning for younger
generations.
I argue that beadwork objects can be best understood as learning and
teaching tools for First Nations people of every generation, that their creation and
essence are linked to every aspect of the culture, and their reclamation cannot
properly happen without observance of all of these connections.
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Extent |
2039799 bytes
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Genre | |
Type | |
File Format |
application/pdf
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Language |
eng
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Date Available |
2009-02-10
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Provider |
Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library
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Rights |
For non-commercial purposes only, such as research, private study and education. Additional conditions apply, see Terms of Use https://open.library.ubc.ca/terms_of_use.
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DOI |
10.14288/1.0087105
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URI | |
Degree | |
Program | |
Affiliation | |
Degree Grantor |
University of British Columbia
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Graduation Date |
1996-05
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Campus | |
Scholarly Level |
Graduate
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Aggregated Source Repository |
DSpace
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Item Media
Item Citations and Data
Rights
For non-commercial purposes only, such as research, private study and education. Additional conditions apply, see Terms of Use https://open.library.ubc.ca/terms_of_use.