Sandra Hale Schulman
Special to ICT
The latest: A famous suit missing for decades joins a museum exhibit, an Indigenous store opens in a Toronto market, and an influential chef wins a prestigious award
DESIGN: Indigenous Mexican designer created iconic suits
Four wildly embroidered suits handmade by Indigenous Mexican artisan/tailor Manuel Arturo José Cuevas Martínez are featured in a new exhibit at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville.
The exhibit, “Western Edge: The Roots and Reverberations of Los Angeles Country-Rock,” includes four iconic “Nudie suits” worn by the Flying Burrito Brothers on the cover of their 1969 album, “The Gilded Palace of Sin.”
The suits, together for the first time in more than half a century, were produced by Nudie’s Rodeo Tailor, the acclaimed shop founded by Russian immigrant Nudie Cohn who became the first to put rhinestones on clothing starting in the 1930s.
Cuevas, 90, who was born in Coalcoman, Michoacan, in Mexico, but now lives in Nashville, has designed other elaborate costumes for Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash and other country stars.
The custom suits for The Flying Burrito Brothers – made up of Gram Parsons, Chris Hillman, Pete Kleinow and Chris Ethridge – were groundbreaking for their elaborate designs of pills, marijuana leaves, nude girls, crosses, birds, and flowers embellished with rhinestones.
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Ethridge’s custom white suit is embroidered with red and yellow roses and rhinestone accents. The design was a nod to Ethridge’s southern roots and was inspired by his love of the Hank Snow version of the song, “Yellow Roses.”
But at the exhibit opening last November, the late Ethridge’s suit was missing, despite a long search by the museum and the family. In a bizarre turn of events, it was found and reunited with the other suits in July.
Ethridge’s suit had been reported stolen from the manager’s car in 1969 shortly after it was on the cover of the influential album. It was recently discovered that the suit had been returned to Nudie’s Rodeo Tailors shop the same year, and that then-rising pop star Elton John bought it off the shop’s rack the following year, complete with Etheridge’s custom nametag inside.
John wore the suit during his 1971 “Top of the Pops” television performance and for the record sleeve of his 1972 “Rocket Man” single released in the United Kingdom.
But this was all pre-internet and pre-cable, and Elton John’s TV appearances were not seen in the U.S. The other suits had stayed with the musicians and their families.
Necia Ethridge, Chris’ daughter, recently purchased the suit after it surfaced in an online auction. She has loaned it to the museum for the exhibit, which runs through May 2025.
“This is an incredible moment for the Ethridge family and our museum,” said Kyle Young, chief executive of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum at the suit’s unveiling.
“To think that such an iconic piece of cosmic cowboy couture took a ride with the ‘Rocket Man’ and made it back home is almost unbelievable,” he said. “But it happened, and we share that story in the exhibit. The Flying Burrito Brothers’ innovative country-rock sound and bold style continues to influence artists to this day. We’re ecstatic to be able to present all four suits together for the first time since they were seen onstage in 1969.”
Cuevas, who attended the new unveiling, called making the suits “a beautiful project.”
The exhibit explores how folk music, including Mexican folk music, influenced the rock-folk-country fusions that emerged from Los Angeles club scenes from the 1960s into the 1980s. Other indigenous Mexican musicians included are Rosie Flores, Linda Ronstadt, Los Lobos and Alejandro Escovedo.
CUISINE: ‘Sioux Chef’ wins Julia Child Foundation award
Adding to a growing list of awards for his cookbook and approach to pre-colonial cuisine, ‘Sioux Chef’ Sean Sherman has been awarded the Julia Child Foundation for Gastronomy and the Culinary Arts Award along with a $50,000 grant for a food-related nonprofit of his choice.
Sherman, Oglala Lakota, who opened a catering and restaurant business, The Sioux Chef, in 2014 and now co-owns and operates Owamni restaurant in Minneapolis, is fresh off the honor of being named one of the Time 100.
He is co-owner with Dana Thompson of Owamni, which won the prestigious James Beard Best New Restaurant Award in 2022. Sherman has won two previous James Beard awards, for Best American Cookbook in 2018 and the James Beard Leadership Award in 2019.
The restaurant, which recently reopened after a fire earlier this year, focuses on regional healthy meals inspired by their ancestors.
Sherman is the first-ever Native to receive the prestigious Julia Child award. He chose his nonprofit, North American Traditional Indigenous Food Systems, and the Indigenous Food Lab to benefit from the grant from the Julia Child Foundation.
Sherman recently opened a professional Indigenous kitchen and training center in Minnesota, and indicated he will use the funds to give back to the community through the grant.
DESIGN: Saying ‘hello’ to new Canadian store
Stackt Market, a vibrant downtown Toronto marketplace made from painted shipping containers, has added a new Indigenous-owned shop called aaniin, which means “hello” in Anishinaabe.
Joining the ranks of hip new stores for a younger generation similar to Relative Arts in New York City, the Indigenous-owned and -operated aaniin features a curated selection of Indigenous-made goods, from clothing and accessories to home decor and art.
The founder, Chelsee Pettit, of the Aamjiwnaang First Nations, chose the name to reflect the store’s commitment to being a welcoming and inclusive space. aaniin’s selection includes pieces from Indigenous brands Lesley Hampton, Future Kokum and Section 35.
Branded athletic suits, socks, bags, and jewelry are some of the ever-changing merchandise.
Visitors can stop by Tuesdays to Sundays, 12-7 p.m. Toronto has the biggest Indigenous population in Ontario and the fourth biggest in Canada.
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