Weaving a Partnership
Throughout GCV&M’s 50th Anniversary year and thanks to funding from the Rochester Area Community Foundation, Tonia Loran-Galban is providing consultation to our curatorial team and basketmaking demonstrations for the public.
Meet Tonia
Tonia Loran-Galban (Mohawk, Bear Clan) resides in Farmington, New York and is a Haudenosaunee Culture Bearer. She is a native traditional basket maker who has worked at Ganondagan State Historic Site (site of a 17thcentury Seneca Town) in Victor, NY as a Senior Interpretive Guide from 1991-2022. She is also a storyteller, bead worker, and an herbalist!
Tonia provides the Rochester Museum & Science Center relevant information pertaining to The Haudenosaunee as a female cultural knowledge keeper, she holds classes and workshops for Seneca Nation of Indians cultural revitalization initiative, she has provided the Akwesasne Museum and cultural center and the st. Regis Mohawk tribe’s Environmental devision with researched alternative plants for traditional weaving. She continues to professionally partner with Ganondagan State Historic Site and Genesee Country Village & Museum as a special presenter.
Join us!
Tonia will be interpreting basketmaking on the following days in the Historic Village. Please plan to join us throughout the year to learn from Tonia and see the basketmaking process – from trunk to treasure-carrier.
- Thursday, May 21, 10am – 2pm
- Saturday, June 13, 10:30am – 2pm
- Thursday, Aug 6, 10:30am – 2pm
- Saturday, Sept 5, 10:30am – 2pm
- Final date TBD
Additionally, Tonia will provide consultation to the Museum’s curatorial staff to better understand baskets in the collection, some of which will be on display in Davis Hall.
More fun as a Member
Museum Members receive free daily admission to GCV&M, guaranteed access to special events, discounts in the Flint Hill Store, and more.