FISHSKINLAB - FISH SKIN LEGACIES

FISH SKIN LEGACIES

My article Fish Skin Legacies has been published in the latest issue of Expedition, the magazine of the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology:

https://www.penn.museum/sites/expedition/fish-skin-legacies/

The article explores the Penn Museum’s exceptional collection of late 19th-century Amur River material culture: fish skin robes, footwear, mittens, bags, sewing tools, household utensils and amulets. It is the result of years of dialogue with Indigenous fish skin artists and Elders, whose knowledge has guided this work at every stage. All my gratitude to Native Elders June Pardue (Sugpiaq/Iñupiaq), Anatoly Donkan (Nanai), Wengfen Yu (Hezhe), and Non Native Elders Lotta Rahme (Swedish), Shigehiro Takano (Japanese, engaged with the Ainu community) and indigo master Takayuki Ishii.

Publishing in Expedition is a true honour. First issued as the Museum Journal (1910–1935) and relaunched as Expedition in 1958, the magazine showcases the Penn Museum’s work in archaeology and anthropology. Today, it continues to engage readers with international research, museum collections, and contributions from scholars around the world. I never imagined I would one day be featured and with such wonderful graphic design.

Scholarship can be rigorous without losing its beauty. Publishing in peer-reviewed journals should engage the senses, honour craft, and reflect the richness of the subjects we study, especially when those subjects carry the texture, colour, and the Indigenous ecological knowledge of fish skin garments.

I am extremely grateful to Quinn Russell Brown for his careful editing, to Bill Wierzbowski for his generosity with the collections during my visits in 2022 and 2023, and to the graphic design team for their stunning work. Thanks also to Tena Thomason for her kind and steady guidance during the Penn Deep Dig: Arctic Fashion series. None of this would have been possible without Bill Fitzhugh’s invitation for a fellowship at the Smithsonian Institution Arctic Studies Center in 2019, and all the support of Stephen Loring. As Quinn notes in the Editor’s introduction, Bill Wierzbowski and Stephen Loring share a passion for Arctic clothing and a generosity that continues to shape the field. Warm thanks to the entire ASC team in Washington, D.C. and in Alaska, for their constant support.