Mary Jackson

Mary Jackson (born 1945) is an African American fiber artist. She is best known for her sweetgrass basket weaving using traditional methods combined with contemporary designs. A native of coastal South Carolina and a descendant of generations of Gullah basket weavers, Jackson was awarded a MacArthur Foundation fellowship in 2008 for "pushing the tradition in stunning new directions." Mary Jackson is a recipient of a 2010 National Heritage Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts. Biography Jackson was born on February 15, 1945. She grew up in the Gullah community of Mount Pleasant, just outside of Charleston, South Carolina. Taught by her mother and grandmother, Jackson started making sweetgrass baskets at the age of four. The tradition and technique of sweetgrass basket weaving has been passed down from one generation to the next, originating with the West African slaves who were brought to coastal South Carolina in the early 1700s. During her childhood, Jackson, along with her siblings and cousins would gather in her grandmother's yard to help weave baskets. After graduating from high school, Jackson moved to New York City, where she attended secretarial school and went on to work for the Metropolitan Insurance Company. Jackson lived in New York for ten years. While in New York city, she would visit museums and art galleries and started to collect contemporary paintings and sculptures.