Golden Triangle artisan Bessie Johnson will be among master crafters featured on the INSP network show “Handcrafted America” airing Friday at 7:30 p.m. CST. Johnson, an acclaimed weaver of pine needle baskets, opened her Clay County home to show host Jill Wagner and a TV production crew in late March to film the segment. Wagner travels the country seeking out artists who create with their hands. The family entertainment channel’s program is now in its third season.
“We are in search of the best of the best,” Wagner said. “We strive to find artists who carry on traditions. It is so important that these types of crafts aren’t lost.”
Wagner said she was shocked when she saw Johnson’s baskets. She was amazed at the workmanship and quality.
Johnson uses longleaf pine needles, walnuts, corn husks, gourds and chinaberries to create intricate basketry that has been featured in Smithsonian traveling exhibitions.
“Weaving baskets with native Mississippi materials takes me back to some of my dearest childhood memories,” Johnson told The Dispatch in April. “I consider this an artistic link to my African forefathers. It’s as much a part of my family’s legacy as any genetic inheritance. … It’s an old, old folk art.”
Announcement of the segment’s air date has stirred up the Johnson household.
“I’m real excited and curious to see it,” the weaver said Thursday. Ever since the film crew spent two days with her this past spring, she’s been a faithful viewer of “Handcrafted America,” she said. She expects to be one of three artisans highlighted in Friday’s show.
Johnson is a charter member of the Mississippi Craftsmen’s Guild and a 2010 recipient of a Mississippi Governor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts.
Watch the episode on Comcast Cable channel 264, DirecTV channel 364 and Dish Network channel 259.
Jan Swoope is the Lifestyles Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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