CA' FOSCARI POSTDOCTORAL FELLOWSHIP
In 2025 I was awarded a Postdoctoral Fellowship at the DSAAM - Department of Asian and African Mediterranean Studies at Ca' Foscari University in Venice for the production of a book on the themes of the Marco Polo Research Center. The MaP Centre's mission is to foster collaborative scientific research and networking for the study of cultural, social, political, economic, and religious interactions across Europe, the Mediterranean region, and Asia.
The book traces the historical circulation of fish skin garments and accessories and traditional production methods among Indigenous communities from the Lower Amur River to Sakhalin Island—the Nivkh, Nanai, Hezhe, and Ainu. Over centuries, trade, travel and salmon-based subsistence economies enabled the transmission of tanning, dyeing, and sewing practices. Although colonisation divided Native territories along Russian, Chinese, and Japanese borders and restricted access to resources, seasonal harvesting cycles and material use persisted.
Fish skin objects held in museum collections preserve knowledge of environmental adaptation, gendered labour, and material expertise. These Native belongings document enduring relationships between people, fish, and landscape. Recognition of their technical, social, and ceremonial roles highlights the expertise of Indigenous women artists and the knowledge embedded in their work. These garments stand as masterpieces of Native art, affirming the place of Arctic Indigenous women within art history and the history of dress.