MY STORY
Boozhoo. Zhaawanogiizhik nindanishinaabewinikaazowin. Waabizheshi (ᐙᐱᔐᔑ᙮ ) niin nindoodem, Baawitigong indoonjibaa. Hello! My name is Zhaawano Giizhik (Southern Cedar). My doodem/clan is Marten and my Ojibwe ancestors came from the rapids of Baawiting - the Sault Ste. Marie area of Upper Michigan and Ontario.
I am a jeweler, a graphic artist, and a writer of blogs about the arts and culture of my Ojibwe ancestors' People, the Baawititigowininiwag (Baawiting Anishinaabeg, Sault Tribe of Chippewa Indians), who are part of the greater nation of Gichigamiin Ojibwe Anishinaabeg of the Great Lakes area in Canada and the United States. For six centuries or more, Gichigamiin, the Great Lakes basin, whose abundant waters, continually ebbing and flowing with the seasons, feed into the Turtle Island continent and the Atlantic Ocean, has been the home of the Anishinaabeg Peoples who for generations have lived close to the water’s edge to survive.
Biindigen, welcome to my website, which is essentially a modern storytelling Lodge; come in and see for yourself how deeply poetical the countless teachings, stories, and magic symbols rooted in Anishinaabe Aki - this ancestral land of boreal forests and freshwater lakes that my ancestors called home - are translated into the graphic art, wedding rings, and jewelry pieces that you find in here...
Please note that the jewelry and works of art that you find on this website can by law not be classified as "Authentic Native American": Each and every creation that comes out of my hands, although inspired by Anishinaabe culture, is uniquely mine and could only have be made by me. So, if you purchase one of my creations you do not purchase an artwork that is authentic Native American; you will, however, have an authentic Zhaawano Giizhik in your possession.
Mijn naam is Zhaawano Giizhik; dit betekent Ceder uit het Zuiden. Sinds medio jaren '80 beoefen ik het beroep van edelsmid, met als specialisme het ontwerpen en vervaardigen van trouwringen en vriendschapsringen.
Ofschoon mijn uitvalsbasis een trendy atelier in het wereldse Amsterdam is, laat ik me bij het ontwerpen van mijn originele trouwringen- en sieradencollectie nadrukkelijk inspireren door de huwelijksrituelen, de verteltradities en de schitterende verhalenrijkdom die hun oorsprong vele duizenden kilometers verderop hebben: in de cultuur van mijn Native American voorouders, de Ojibwe Anishinaabeg (Chippewa) uit het Grote-Merengebied van Noord-Amerika. De titels van de trouwringen en -sieraden die op deze website voorkomen, verwijzen dan ook naar de talloze traditionele verhalen en magische symbolen die hun wortels hebben in dit uitgestrekte noordelijke land van wouden en zoetwatermeren.
