Louisa Keyser / Dat-so-la-lee
Washoe, (1829-1925), L.K.30, 1902, of slightly oval degikup form, finely stitched with vertical design bands of stacked concentric triangles and chevrons in alternating colors.
height 9 5/8in, diameter 13 3/8in
Footnotes:
Provenance
George Sanford, Nevada
By descent to his son Graham Sanford
the Estate of Jean Sanford, Graham's widow
Gene Quintana, Carmichael, CA
Bonhams, San Francisco, The Robert 'Trader Bob' Bayuk Collection of Native American Art, June 2012, sale 20296, lot 1090

In an accompanying letter of authenticity dated 14 April, 1995, Marvin Cohodas, Professor Emeritus of the Department of Fine Arts at the University of British Columbia writes:

'The Washoe degikup pictured below is the work of Louisa Keyser, also known as Dat so la lee, and is registered as L.K.30 in the Cohn register of her baskets. This basket was unsold at the time of Abe Cohn's death in 1934, but after that time was given along with two others (one of which was LK46 -Hardiman) to the lawyer, George Sanford, in partial return for settling the estate. When George Sanford left two of the Louisa Keyser baskets to his children, his son Graham Sanford acquired L.K.30, and his daughter acquired another (basket). L.K.30 then remained in the possession of Graham Sanford's widow until her death...

L.K.30 is of the 'classic' or characteristic type of shape and design which Louis Keyser used for her major works between 1898 and 1916. Involving rounded shape, fine stitching of around 30 stitches per inch, and either scattered or vertically arranged patterns of small design units. The ovoid shape was a customary departure for her, and it appears as well on L.K.26 presently in the Brooklyn Museum.

At the time she wove L.K.30, the large size and fine stitching prevented Louisa Keyser from finishing more than 2-3 per year. However, after 1906, with the production of even larger major pieces, relieved from time to time with the production of minor baskets, Louisa Keyser produced about one major work per year, until her death in 1925. She thus produced only about 40, large major degikup in her period of the Cohn's patronage, of which well over half are in public collections in Carson City, Reno, Los Angeles, New York City, Philadelphia, and others. Hence few ever appear on the market.'

Accompanying the basket is the original certificate from the Emporium Company in Carson City, Nevada, listing this as 'Register No. 30 LK.' Four months in the making, and with 27 stitches per inch, this is one of the approximately 40 major degikup, or ceremonial baskets made by Dat-So- La-Lee under the patronage of The Emporium's owner, Abe Cohen. Cohn's wife, Amy, named this basket with the fanciful title: 'We inherit the right to be free like the birds,' a supposed interpretation of the design elements. The name may refer to the unusual start of the basket, finished during a period of experimentation for the weaver: her middle period.

In an updated letter of authenticity dated May 2, 2022, Dr. Cohodas expands on his previous analysis regarding Keyser's experimental period, discussing the innovative shape and design of L.K. 30. Please contact the department for the full text of that document.