Rabbit Jacket

2016- 2021

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Materials: domestic rabbit skins; tannins from winged sumac leaf (Rhus coppalinum), hemlock bark (Tsuga canadensis), and black walnut hull (Juglans nigra); rendered rabbit and possum fat; olive oil; deer buckskin cord; dogbane (Apocynum cannabinum) thread; beeswax; found printed cotton fabric.

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This short cropped jacket is a garment construction project spanning five years. It consists of (9) domestic rabbit skins vegetable tanned by the artist using local tannic plants. The main body of the garment is stitched with deer buckskin cord using a deer bone awl, metal awl, and beeswax. Colored cotton accent trim and cloth buttons were added in 2021 and stitched with handmade dogbane thread using a steal sewing needle, thimble, and beeswax. The garment is subject to the devotion of heavy use in outdoor living, and thus continues to evolve.