Open Spaces

"Always Be A'Thinkin'": Traditional Rawhide Braider Shares Knowledge With Next Generations

Wyoming Public Radio | By Melodie Edwards

Published January 17, 2020 at 4:41 PM MST

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Soliana Abernathy and her daughter Heart Grace stand next to Jack Mease, holding a hackamore he made.

Melodie Edwards

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A miniature hackamore made by Jack Mease. He has a display of his minatures at the State Museum in Cheyenne.

Melodie Edwards

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Rawhide horse tack is more comfortable in the hand, Abernathy says. She makes it to use rather than for art.

Melodie Edwards

It isn't easy keeping America's folk arts alive, but the Wyoming Arts Council has been doing their best to preserve Wyoming's. Each year, they give out grants to folk artists who pass on their knowledge to the next generation.

Jack Mease braids rawhide to create beautiful horse tack like reins and hackamores, and now has taught numerous students, including Soliana Abernathy. Mease and Abernathy were among last year's recipients of the Wyoming Arts Council's Folk and Traditional Art Mentoring grant. You can see Mease's work at the State Museum in Cheyenne.

Wyoming Public Radio's Melodie Edwards visited Mease's workshop in Lander.

Have a question about this story? Contact the reporter, Melodie Edwards, at medward9@uwyo.edu.