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Kitsap Peninsula Weaver and Chief Seattle Descendant Presents Commissioned Cedar Mat at Symphony Ceremony Officially Acknowledging that the Orchestra Performs on Traditional Tribal Land 

When DeAnn Sackman contemplates classical music, her mind more readily conjures wind in the woods than woodwinds.

Breezes whistling through leaves, birds warbling amorous arias, raindrops percussing against mossy undergrowth — such is the soundtrack playing as the Duwamish artist approaches a towering cedar and deftly harvests a strip of bark resembling a rust-colored fruit rollup. She continues meditating on nature’s melodies as she bows before the trunk, offering a prayer to honor its gift.

“I get lost in how peaceful it is,” said the Kitsap Peninsula weaver and descendant of Seattle’s namesake. “It helps me feel more connected to my history and reveals more about who I am now, all while allowing me to advance a tradition for future generations. All to say, I’m moved by this continuation of the past into the present and future. And that’s the heart of art, isn’t it? To feel something and better understand your place in it all? That’s art, whether you’re weaving or playing an instrument.”

Just as Sackman praises the organic intersection between the environment and the arts, so, too, does she marvel at the potential impact of collaboration between the city’s cultural organizations and the region’s native inhabitants. For this reason, Sackman — whose lineage can be directly traced to Chief Seattle and his daughter, Angeline — said she is particularly honored to have been commissioned by the Seattle Symphony to create a woven cedar mat for Benaroya Hall. The art installation will be unveiled during the Free Opening Weekend Concert on September 19 and will be permanently displayed in The Boeing Company Gallery as a part of the Symphony’s acknowledgement that the orchestra performs on Indigenous land.

“As an arts organization, we connect with and serve our community through art, and what is art if not a reflection on the truth we see around us. The truth of the Puget Sound region is that we are on the traditional land of the first people of Seattle, and it feels right that we launch our season by publicly acknowledging this on our stage,” said Krishna Thiagarajan, President and CEO of the Seattle Symphony.

The unveiling ceremony will feature remarks from representatives of the Symphony as well as local tribes and begins at 12:30 p.m., prior to the Free Opening Weekend Concert. The weekend’s festivities also serve as the organization’s long-awaited return to live music for in-person audiences since the pandemic’s start.

"This opening concert is already remarkable and worthy of celebration in that it is our first reunion with our general audience since we closed in response to COVID-19 last March,” Thiagarajan said. “It just feels right that we launch this jubilant return to live music by publicly thanking our Coast Salish neighbors, specifically the Duwamish, for hosting us on their land.”

Sunday’s onstage comments will not be the Symphony’s first public land acknowledgement, as it has long included in its written materials the statement, “The Seattle Symphony acknowledges that we gather on Indigenous land: the traditional territory of Coast Salish peoples, specifically the Duwamish Tribe (Dkhw Duw’Absh).” However, this will mark the first implementation of the organization’s new policy of honoring the tribes as host from the stage before each concert, and it serves as a continuation of the Symphony’s commitment to feature Indigenous voices and experiences in its programming.

“While our intent with this unveiling and acknowledgement is to honor the truth of the people who comprise our community, we recognize that it is but one step in a larger commitment to putting our core values of respect, inclusivity, and integrity into action regarding our Indigenous neighbors,” Thiagarajan said.

This step is one Sackman said would bring pride to her ancestors, both distant and more recent.

“I’m excited that my art can honor my lineage while also sparking conversation about what it means to be Indigenous and to go about our lives on Indigenous land,” she said. “I’m excited to see it on the wall, to know that something I collected from nature and poured my heart into will bring others joy and reflection.”

The mat — which was hand-woven from cedar bark strips and features hand-crafted details made from materials sustainably harvested from regional woods — would have especially pleased her father, William. While being treated for terminal brain cancer, he encouraged his daughter to pursue traditional weaving and suggested she apprentice with her aunt, the renowned Duwamish weaver and great granddaughter of Chief Seattle, Mary Lou Slaughter. That conversation sparked an artistic passion that has since spanned nearly 20 years, generated speaking engagements and workshops, and resulted in Sackman’s work on display at various museums and galleries.

“My father grew up in a time when there was a lot of stigma around Indigenous status, and it can be a struggle to figure out how you want to embrace that part of yourself when you’re facing that turmoil, but he did, and he encouraged me to do the same, through art,” Sackman said. “And now, here I am, and my art, made from the sacred cedar tree in the traditional manner, is being displayed at one of the premiere art organizations in the city named after my ancestor. He would be so proud, knowing that I’m doing something that furthers this legacy and the conversation around it.”

She said her father would appreciate the symbolism she incorporated into the mat for the Symphony. The piece itself is intended to promote such themes as meeting spaces and finding common ground, and the artist said she views the mat as a physical representation of “a bridge of sharing.” These concepts arise in a design of cedar bark buttons, painted red and black, that are strategically placed atop the woven mat. The buttons, shaped to resemble both musical notes and Native song dots, capture the beauty of the intersection of Indigenous and Western music. Placed together in a circle, the notes and dots evoke the continuous cycle of sharing and learning as music speaks to all cultures.

“It almost represents a ripple effect of the people music impacts in the community and beyond,” Sackman said. “I think that gets back to the conversation about the heart of art. When you make art, whether it’s music or a mat, it’s not just in the doing of it. It’s in the sharing of it, as well. You’re being a culture-bearer, and I like to think that’s what we’re doing together here.”