“Diving Whale”

Private Collection, Mercer Island, WA
6-piece Ravenstail & Chilkat Ceremonial Regalia: includes robe, apron, headdress, leggings & octopus bag. Merino wool, cedarbark, ermine, copper cones and small copper T’naa, leather, cotton fabric. ©2006 Clarissa Rizal

“Copper Man” is the mate to “Copper Woman”. All six of the Copper Man regalia pieces are Ravenstail weavings with the exception of the leggings with the upper half being Chilkat and the bottom half Ravenstail. Copper cones trim all the fringe.

Copper Man’s robe is called “The Lyme’s Disease” robe because it was designed and woven during my personal episode with battling the disease. There are a few “mistakes” I hadn’t noticed until weeks later; I decided to leave the mistakes in the robe to remind me of a time in my life where I was “out of it” and then took my own initiative and responsibility to heal myself of a debilitating disease.