08/05/2026
A glimpse into the story of the 1950s beaded gauntlets in our new book!
Salmon were central to life and culture in the Columbia River Plateau, but you rarely see them in the region’s beadwork. These gauntlets are an interesting exception. The salmon depicted here are an unusual motif, but when the fish do appear, they are often accompanied by birds, likely referencing swallows' return to the Columbia River each year in concert with the initial salmon runs.
The beaded and fringed gauntlets belonged to George Gibson, a resident of northeast Oregon’s Umatilla Indian Reservation, who was photographed wearing a matching vest. His wife, Mary Gibson, may have embroidered both. Geometric, floral, and pictorial beadwork, like that seen on these gauntlets, became a signature style in the region even as federal and state governments waged forceful campaigns of acculturation.
Read more about these gauntlets in Steven L. Grafe’s essay in Handwork: Handcrafted Objects That Made America book, available for purchase at phaidon.com. Handwork: Celebrating American Craft 2026 Maryhill Museum of Art
Beaded Gauntlets, c. 1950, Attributed to Mary Gibson (Yakama or Umatilla, active mid-20th century), Glass beads, thread, cloth, leather 16 ⅞ in. Maryhill Museum of Art, Goldendale, WA. Photos courtesy of the Maryhill Museum of Art.
