As part of the renowned Neptune family, Gerald always knew he would keep his heritage alive by contributing to a great basketmaking tradition. As a young boy he watched his uncles pound ash and weave large fish-scale baskets for the sardine factory in Eastport, Maine.
Gerald’s inspiration and mentor is his late grandmother, Angela Barnes. He follows in her footsteps and has been making baskets since 2000. He now crafts many of the fancy baskets she made so many years ago.
The brown ash used in his baskets is harvested and hand pounded by him in the Passamaquoddy tradition. He also harvests the sweetgrass himself from the down east coastline like is ancestors have done for hundreds of years.
His baskets are on display in the Hudson Museum in the Collins Center for the Arts, on the UM Orono campus.
His work includes Harvest, Market, and Gathering baskets, large waste baskets, sewing baskets, and fancy baskets of all shapes and sizes.
The vibrant colors, mixed with the white sap wood combined with the fresh, green sweetgrass make each work truly a piece of art that will last for generations.
