Jeremy Frey
Jeremy Frey | |
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| Born | 1978 (age 47–48) |
| Citizenship | Passamaquoddy Tribe and U.S. |
| Education | Maine Indian Basketmakers Alliance |
| Known for | Brown ash basketry |
| Awards |
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Jeremy Frey (born 1978) is a Passamaquoddy basket maker from the U.S. state of Maine. He harvests materials and weaves baskets using ancestral Wabanaki Passamaquoddy techniques. His mid-career retrospective, Jeremy Frey: Woven, toured multiple museums around the country in 2025. He received the Rapaport Prize in 2024 and a MacArthur Fellowship in 2025 for his basket making.
Early life and education
[edit]Jeremy Frey was born and raised in the Passamaquoddy Indian Township Reservation, and from a young age, he painted and made his own toys.[1]
Career
[edit]He worked kitchen jobs during his early 20s and suffered from addiction. He soon returned home to clean up from his addiction and began learning traditional Wabanaki basket weaving,[2] as his mother was also studying. He studied at workshops run by the Maine Indian Basketmakers Alliance,[3] and became a basketmaker himself. Soon, in 2011, his baskets received Best in Show at both the Southwestern Association for Indian Arts and the Heard Museum.[4]
He is noted for crafting his baskets utilizing materials including porcupine quills, brown ash, cedar, sweet grass, and spruce root, and for utilizing much smaller weaves than is traditional[5] (32nd of an inch as opposed to a quarter of an inch).[4] He has also began utilizing copper strips in his art as a response to the Emerald ash borer.[1] His art has been described as "dizzying" and "kaleidoscopic".[6]
Exhibitions
[edit]He had his first major retrospective and traveling exhibition, Jeremy Frey: Woven[7], begin in 2024. It has so far appeared in the Portland Museum of Art[8][9], where it was the second-most visited exhibition[10], the Bruce Museum[11], the Art Institute of Chicago[12], and the Cantor Arts Center[13].
Awards and honors
[edit]He was awarded a MacArthur Fellowship in 2025 for his basket weaving.[14][15] He was awarded the Rapaport Prize, granted to an exceptional artist with connections to New England, in 2024.[16]
Publications
[edit]He published his first book, Jeremy Frey: Woven, in connection with his traveling exhibition of the same name.[17]
Collections
[edit]His art is in the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art[18], the Smithsonian American Art Museum[19], the Denver Art Museum[20], and others.
References
[edit]- 1 2 Martin, Hannah (May 1, 2026). "Jeremy Frey's Elaborate, Hand-Woven Baskets Keep Tradition Alive". Architectural Digest. Retrieved May 31, 2026.
- ↑ In Maine, the Art of Basketry Hangs On By a Thread. Retrieved May 31, 2026 – via www.atlasobscura.com.
- ↑ "Jeremy Frey: Basket Maker. Artist. Innovator". Baskets of Time. Retrieved May 31, 2026.
- 1 2 Scott, Chadd. "Passamaquoddy Basket Weaver Jeremy Frey, From Addiction To Adulation". Forbes. Retrieved May 31, 2026.
- ↑ "The Genius Next Door: Jeremy Frey elevates basketry from craft to high art". GBH. January 9, 2026. Retrieved May 31, 2026.
- ↑ "The Mesmerizing Wonder of Wabanaki Weaving". Hyperallergic. August 21, 2025. Retrieved May 31, 2026.
- ↑ Wright, Virginia M. (July 1, 2024). "The Modern Master of Wabanaki Basketry". Down East Magazine. Retrieved May 31, 2026.
- ↑ "Jeremy Frey: Woven". Portland Museum of Art. Retrieved May 31, 2026.
- ↑ "At the Portland Museum of Art, Jeremy Frey's Baskets Conjure the Past While Presenting a Warning for the Future". Boston Art Review. Retrieved May 31, 2026.
- ↑ "With striking baskets, artist Jeremy Frey weaves a path into the artworld". Art Basel. Retrieved May 31, 2026.
- ↑ Fabrique. "Jeremy Frey: Woven". The Bruce Museum. Retrieved May 31, 2026.
- ↑ "Jeremy Frey: Woven". The Art Institute of Chicago. October 26, 2024. Retrieved May 31, 2026.
- ↑ Release, Press (March 23, 2026). "Jeremy Frey Passamaquoddy baskets at Stanford's Cantor Art's Center". See Great Art. Retrieved May 31, 2026.
- ↑ "Jeremy Frey". www.macfound.org. Retrieved May 31, 2026.
- ↑ "Congratulations to Maine MacArthur Foundation Award Winner Jeremy Frey". October 10, 2025. Retrieved May 31, 2026.
- ↑ "Indigenous Artist Jeremy Frey Awarded 2024 Rappaport Prize". The Trustees of Reservations. Retrieved May 31, 2026.
- ↑ Simone, Jaime de; Mize, Ramey; Secord, Theresa; Hoska, Dakota; Hamilton, Andrew James. "Paperback Jeremy Frey Catalog". PMA Store at the Portland Museum of Art, Maine. Retrieved May 31, 2026.
- ↑ "Jeremy Frey - Radiance - The Metropolitan Museum of Art". The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Archived from the original on March 17, 2026. Retrieved May 31, 2026.
- ↑ "Large Turquoise Urchin Basket | Smithsonian American Art Museum". americanart.si.edu. Retrieved May 31, 2026.
- ↑ "Watchful Spirit | Denver Art Museum". www.denverartmuseum.org. Retrieved May 31, 2026.
External links
[edit]- Jeremy Frey, official website
