Ben Fairbanks 51655 Coral Road Deer River MN 56636 (218) 246-9484 Work Samples Images (select to enlarge):

Ben Fairbanks Native American birch bark canoes A member of the Ojibwe from Leech Lake Indian Reservation, Ben Fairbanks was introduced to birch bark work as a child by his grandmother and mother. When he saw his birch bark work as a way of making a living, he received valuable guidance from an elder, expert, traditional artist from a nearby community. Most of his materials he harvests from the nearby woods. Ben makes a number of small canoes, but has also crafted some sixteen- to 20-foot utilitarian canoes. He sells his large-scale work on commission from Native American organizations, and his baskets and other small pieces are sold through shops. Available: Anytime; no mileage restrictions Space: For long canoes, 20 by 8 ft.; for small canoes, 10 by 8 ft. Fee: Negotiable

Additional Information:
A member of the Leech Lake band of the Ojibwe tribe, Benny Fairbanks makes objects out of birch bark in the manner of his ancestors. As a child growing up in the north woods, he watched his grandmother and mother make items such as makuks, traditional storage containers used by centuries of Ojibwe people. From them and from others he not only learned how to create objects made of birch bark, but also traditional Ojibwe methods of harvesting materials that do not injure trees. For example, Benny says that May 10-July 15 is the optimal period for peeling birch bark, for in this period, the bark easily comes off of the tree when it is cut.

Experience with natural materials has made Benny a connoisseur of forest-harvested materials. For example once birch bark has been cut from a tree, it grows back, but the aesthetic properties of "second growth" bark differs from the original bark. "Second growth" bark has a greater number of hues and differs texturally from the original bark. "Second growth" bark can be harvested, and Benny likes to work with it to create some objects. After years of experience, Benny has set on spruce, and not pine roots for lashing materials. The critical difference is that split spruce roots yield straighter lashing than pine, an effect that Benny finds aesthetically pleasing.

Many of Benny's small pieces are sold in the Northern Minnesota tourist trade. However, in recent years, Benny has found a market not only for small canoes a foot or less in length, but for larger ones up to twenty feet long. Benny credits Josie Ryan of nearby Bena, MN for the inspiration to create "seaworthy" canoes. Exteriors of these utilitarian canoes are made of birch, the insides are lined with cedar strips, and the rims are lashed on with split spruce roots. The only portion of the canoe not made of materials found in the woods is pitch. Benny said it was a very time consuming process to procure pitch from trees, so he used a commercial preparation instead.

Benny has been commissioned by several Native American institutions and businesses to create utilitarian canoes, and he continues to make smaller objects as well. The only difference between the objects he makes today and historical ones is that in the early twenty-first century, is that birch bark canoes or containers are seldom used for storage. However, Ojibwe people cherish them as reminders of their shared cultural past.