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Hopi Nation: Essays on Indigenous Art, Culture, History, and Law

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“Frontmatter” To Hopi Nation, Edna Glenn, John R. Wunder, Willard Hughes Rollings, C. L. Martin Sep 2008

“Frontmatter” To Hopi Nation, Edna Glenn, John R. Wunder, Willard Hughes Rollings, C. L. Martin

Hopi Nation: Essays on Indigenous Art, Culture, History, and Law

Contains:
Editor’s Note
Contents
List of Illustrations
Preface by Edna Glenn, Texas Tech University and John R. Wunder, University of Nebraska-Lincoln

The Hopi Nation reminds itself daily that it is “at the center” of life on the arid mesas of the Hopi Reservation in northeastern Arizona. It has been doing so for over 1000 years, and it will likely do so for many centuries to come. Hopi life is not an easy life, but it is a full and rewarding life. Read this book and enjoy a visual and intellectual celebration of the Hopi Nation.


Commentary I: Celebration, Edna Glenn Sep 2008

Commentary I: Celebration, Edna Glenn

Hopi Nation: Essays on Indigenous Art, Culture, History, and Law

In March, 1981, Texas Tech University hosted a conference, “The Hopi Year: A Tricentennial Symposium,” and at that conference discussions centered upon a complex topic, the meaning of HOPI.1 The conference featured cultural interchanges among experts of both Hopi and non-Hopi origins, and this volume contains the substantive and visual presentations of this unusual gathering. The content is interdisciplinary and presented in the context of both historic and contemporary viewpoints. Also important is attention given to land-use patterns and to environmental systems of human and physical growth and survival as related to the arid regions of the Hopi Reservation. Perhaps …


Chapter 1 The Hopi Nation In 1980, Abbott Sekaquaptewa Sep 2008

Chapter 1 The Hopi Nation In 1980, Abbott Sekaquaptewa

Hopi Nation: Essays on Indigenous Art, Culture, History, and Law

“It is a time to recall and to revitalize the good things of Hopi life and to celebrate Hopism.”

The Hopi people have retained their cultural life to perhaps a greater degree than most Indian peoples in the United States today. Customary practices which govern the pattern of life from birth to death for most Hopi are still carried out to a large extent.

The Hopi mesas are located in northeastern Arizona in the plateau country where the Hopi clans began gathering a millennium ago. The clans were not strangers to the land at that time, for many had passed …


Chapter 2 Hopi Mesas And Migrations: Land And People, Lomawywesa (Michael Kabotie) Sep 2008

Chapter 2 Hopi Mesas And Migrations: Land And People, Lomawywesa (Michael Kabotie)

Hopi Nation: Essays on Indigenous Art, Culture, History, and Law

Survival and revival; the varied landscapes, buildings and environment; agricultural practices, arts and crafts; community institutions, cultural programs, clan beliefs and rituals—these all have meaning to our Hopi people and Hopi land.

The Hopi Reservation is situated in northeastern Arizona, about seventy-five or one hundred miles from the San Francisco Peaks, one of our sacred mountains. We call it Nuvatukwiovi. An examination of the geographical area reveals that to the far eastern edge of the Hopi Reservation is Keam’s Canyon, the region in which the Federal Government offices are located. Westward from Keam’s Canyon are the three Hopi mesas with …


Hopi Nation: Essays On Indigenous Art, Culture, History, And Law [Complete Work], Edna Glenn, John R. Wunder, Willard Hughes Rollings, C. L. Martin Sep 2008

Hopi Nation: Essays On Indigenous Art, Culture, History, And Law [Complete Work], Edna Glenn, John R. Wunder, Willard Hughes Rollings, C. L. Martin

Hopi Nation: Essays on Indigenous Art, Culture, History, and Law

Contents

EDITOR’S NOTE

CONTENTS

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

PREFACE: Edna Glenn, Texas Tech University and John R. Wunder, University of Nebraska-Lincoln

COMMENTARY I: CELEBRATION: Edna Glenn

1 THE HOPI NATION IN 1980: “It is a time to recall and to revitalize the good things of Hopi life and to celebrate Hopism.” Abbott Sekaquaptewa, Chairman, Hopi Tribal Council

EXEMPLARY ARTS: SECTION A — Subject: Concepts of Emergence and Migration: Edna Glenn

2 HOPI MESAS AND MIGRATIONS: LAND AND PEOPLE: “Here among the sandstone mesas you will find the Hopis. ‘Among them we settled as rain....’” Lomawywesa (Michael Kabotie), Hopi Cultural Center and …


Exemplary Arts: Section A — Subject: Concepts Of Emergence And Migration, Edna Glenn Sep 2008

Exemplary Arts: Section A — Subject: Concepts Of Emergence And Migration, Edna Glenn

Hopi Nation: Essays on Indigenous Art, Culture, History, and Law

Three Paintings by the Artist Hopid

Figure 7: Emergence — Dawakema (Milland Lomakema)
Figure 8: Migrational Patterns — Lomawywesa (Michael Kabotie)
Figure 9: Spiritual Leadership — Dawakema (Milland Lomakema)

“We believe that we are a part of a great living force which began hundreds of years ago ... Our concept is that we came from the Third World of the Hopi and that now, we are in the Fourth World ... We emerged from underground, somewhere in the Grand Canyon.”—Honvantewa

Ideas of EMERGENCE and MIGRATION permeate the consciousness of every Hopi. They structure ceremonial time and provide patterns for daily …


Exemplary Arts: Section B — Subject: Corn As Life Essence, Edna Glenn Sep 2008

Exemplary Arts: Section B — Subject: Corn As Life Essence, Edna Glenn

Hopi Nation: Essays on Indigenous Art, Culture, History, and Law

Five Paintings by the Artist Hopid

Figure 13: Four Mother Corn — Dawakema (Milland Lomakema)
Figure 14: Kachina Maiden Watching Fields — Coochsiwkioma (Delbridge Honanie)
Figure 15: Harvest Prayer — Honvantewa (Terrance Talaswaima)
Figure 16: Kachinas Germinating Plants — Dawakema (Milland Lomakema)
Figure 17: Angak’ China (Long-haired Kachina) — Honvantewa (Terrance Talaswaima)

“Hopi basically are corn people. We believe in agriculture because our greatest symbol is the corn, the ‘Corn Mother’.”—Lomawywesa


Exemplary Arts: Section C — Subject: Ceremony — Ancient And Contemporary Images, Edna Glenn Sep 2008

Exemplary Arts: Section C — Subject: Ceremony — Ancient And Contemporary Images, Edna Glenn

Hopi Nation: Essays on Indigenous Art, Culture, History, and Law

The Artist Hopid were inspired and challenged when we took time in the early years of the 1970s to study wall paintings from kivas unearthed at the ancient villages.... We did some intensive research for the purpose of learning about ancient, Hopi ceremonial art. Primarily, we were interested in the style of images, form and composition, and symbolic meaning.—Honvantewa

Twenty-three examples are presented:

Ancient Awatovi site: Figures 20-23(Courtesy of the Peabody Museum, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts)
20. AWATOVI KIVA MURAL, Arizona,Room 529, Right Wall, Design 1
21. AWATOVI KIVA MURAL, Arizona, Room 788, Composite of Left and Right Walls, Design …


Chapter 3 The Hopi Way: Art As Life, Symbol, And Ceremony, Honvantewa (Terrance Talaswaima) Sep 2008

Chapter 3 The Hopi Way: Art As Life, Symbol, And Ceremony, Honvantewa (Terrance Talaswaima)

Hopi Nation: Essays on Indigenous Art, Culture, History, and Law

“As artists, we try to document every aspect of Hopi life. We know the Hopi way; we live it, we can taste, we can see, and we can smell Hopi.”

Spiritual essence is the heart of the Hopi way. It is the ceremonial way, but also it is the every-day way of Hopi, human life. It is the physical world of beauty which surrounds us in animals and plants, but also it is the spiritual world, because everything in nature has a spirit. Our concept of the Hopi way is that a spiritual essence touches every part of our lives; …


Exemplary Arts: Section D — Subject: Contemporary Arts And Crafts, Edna Glenn Sep 2008

Exemplary Arts: Section D — Subject: Contemporary Arts And Crafts, Edna Glenn

Hopi Nation: Essays on Indigenous Art, Culture, History, and Law

Hopi people have always been very fine artists. In 1950 we developed the Hopi Arts and Crafts Cooperative Guild . . . The Hopi Co-op supports some four hundred artists and craftsmen . . . Basketry and pottery are the oldest of the art forms among our people. — Lomawywesa

Sixteen examples are presented in this section. Other examples of painting, photography, and graphics are included throughout the book.

Ceramics, Figures 43-51
43. HOPI CERAMIC PROCESSES, 2 photographs — Sylvia Naha Talaswaima, potter,First Mesa, Arizona. 1981
45 – 48. ONE CERAMIC BOWL (four views) — Sylvia Naha Talaswaima, potter,First Mesa, …


Commentary Ii: Ceremony, Edna Glenn Sep 2008

Commentary Ii: Ceremony, Edna Glenn

Hopi Nation: Essays on Indigenous Art, Culture, History, and Law

A typical Hopi ceremonial day offers a visual reality. At Walpi, a village on First Mesa, it is summer and Niman time, and a thanksgiving ritual is beginning. The Kuwan Heheya Kachinas set the first foot movements. Their body actions of their dance begin while their “uncle,” Tu-uqti,1 vigorously performs his solo act in front of their dance lines. A cluster of Koshari clowns,2 starkly visible in their body-paint stripes, collect their parade paraphernalia for antics later in the day. The plaza is crowded, action is anticipated. It is a Hopi celebration day.

The all-encompassing character of the scene itself …


Exemplary Arts: Section E — Subject: Kachinas, Edna Glenn Sep 2008

Exemplary Arts: Section E — Subject: Kachinas, Edna Glenn

Hopi Nation: Essays on Indigenous Art, Culture, History, and Law

“The central theme of the Kachina Cult is the presence of life in all objects that fill the universe.” — Barton Wright

“The concept of fertility is central in Hopi thinking. It applies not only to good crops but to the general multiplication of good and desired objects and beings . . . Thus, as women give birth to the people and cause them to multiply, so do the kachinas cause food and other blessings to multiply.” — Alice Schlegel

Eight examples are presented in this section; others are included on previous pages

Sculptural forms: Figures 68-70
68. EOTOTO AND …


Chapter 5 Hopi Social Structure As Related To Tihu Symbolism, Alice Schlegel Sep 2008

Chapter 5 Hopi Social Structure As Related To Tihu Symbolism, Alice Schlegel

Hopi Nation: Essays on Indigenous Art, Culture, History, and Law

“Life is the highest good; in an environment where survival requires constant effort, . . . the richest blessing is abundance of food and children.”


Kachina dolls, those representations of the dancers who impersonate the supernatural kachinas, have captured the fancy of many art lovers for their colorfulness, the skill with which they are frequently made, and the variety of kachina forms they represent. To the collector, they are art objects, to be appreciated in terms of color, design and quality of craftsmanship. To the historian or museum curator, they are representative of the kachinas; as such, they are classified …


Chapter 4 Hopi Kachinas: A Life Force, Barton Wright Sep 2008

Chapter 4 Hopi Kachinas: A Life Force, Barton Wright

Hopi Nation: Essays on Indigenous Art, Culture, History, and Law

“Everything has an essence or life force, and humans must interact with these or fail to survive.”


It is not known where the Kachina Cult originated, but some evidence points to a Meso-American origin, brought possibly with the clans which migrated from north to south and north again. There are a few archaeological hints which indicate that there was a viable Kachina Cult by the time the Hopi settled at the center of their world in 1100. The Kachina Cult is shared with all the other Pueblo peoples who live to the east, from Zuni to Taos and formerly Pecos …


Chapter 6 Contemporary Hopi Courts And Law, Piestewa (Robert H. Ames) Sep 2008

Chapter 6 Contemporary Hopi Courts And Law, Piestewa (Robert H. Ames)

Hopi Nation: Essays on Indigenous Art, Culture, History, and Law

“We believe we are ‘at the center’ and this gives us a very secure feeling about where we are, where we have been, and what we are going to do.”


To understand how Hopi courts are trying to utilize custom and tradition, it is necessary first to understand the court structure, jurisdiction, and procedures of the Hopi Nation’s judicial system. The Hopi court system is composed of two courts—the Hopi Tribal Appellate Court and the Hopi Tribal Trial Court. My present appointment is Chief Judge of the Hopi Tribal Trial Court. The Hopi Trial Court is the highest trial court …


Chapter 7 The Enduring Hopi, Peter Iverson Sep 2008

Chapter 7 The Enduring Hopi, Peter Iverson

Hopi Nation: Essays on Indigenous Art, Culture, History, and Law

The Hopi world is centered on and around three mesas in northeastern Arizona named First, Second, and Third. It is at first glance a harsh and rugged land, not always pleasing to the untrained eye. Prosperity here can only be realized with patience, determination, and a belief in tomorrow. For over 400 years, the Hopis have confronted the incursion of outside non-Indian societies. The history of white-Indian relations in this country suggests that men and women of good will may differ over the appropriate strategy, over the proper behavior, and over the definition of identity. The Hopis are not exceptions …


Commentary Iii: Challenge, Edna Glenn Sep 2008

Commentary Iii: Challenge, Edna Glenn

Hopi Nation: Essays on Indigenous Art, Culture, History, and Law

A visual challenge results from experiences with original works of art reproduced on these pages. These are contemporary Hopi paintings and craft-works executed by young artists who call themselves the Artist Hopid. Coochsiwukioma (Delbridge Honanie), a painter of the Artist Hopid group, presents a view of “Hopi Life,” the title of an extremely complicated work completed in 1974. Examining this painting is indeed valuable in the pursuit of defining the contemporary HOPI. “Hopi Life,” according to its painter, symbolically evolves from the central theme of Hopi migrations. 6 Ideas of migration, fertility, and growth, structure the centuries-old concept of Hopi …


Contributors — Hopi Nation, [The Editors] Sep 2008

Contributors — Hopi Nation, [The Editors]

Hopi Nation: Essays on Indigenous Art, Culture, History, and Law

Robert H. Ames (PIESTEWA)
Edna Glenn
Peter Iverson
Michael Kabotie (LOMAWYWESA)
Alice Schlegel
Abbott Sekaquaptewa,
Terrance Talaswaima (HONVANTEWA)
Barton Wright
John R. Wunder


Hopi Essence: Self-Portrait And Poem, Lomawywesa (Michael Kabotie) Sep 2008

Hopi Essence: Self-Portrait And Poem, Lomawywesa (Michael Kabotie)

Hopi Nation: Essays on Indigenous Art, Culture, History, and Law

The somber face, the snow-misting hair and the eyes looking at me/you is me—Lomawywesa, Antelopes Walking in Harmony. Born to the Snow/Water Clan of Shungopavi, a migratory people who traveled to the Hopi mesas from the legendary Red City to the South, Paalotkwapi.
It was at Paalotkwapi that our Father, the Serpent, emerged and gathered us, his children, and blessed us with Clouds. “Go northward my Children,” he directed us. So northward we journeyed and among the barren mesas we emerged to reside with the Bear Clan and build our Cloud-Inspired Homes.
And
to these Cloud-Terraced homes our Cloud Fathers/Mothers …


Bibliography — Hopi Nation, John R. Wunder Sep 2008

Bibliography — Hopi Nation, John R. Wunder

Hopi Nation: Essays on Indigenous Art, Culture, History, and Law

Selected Basic Hopi Bibliography — 51 works
General Hopi Bibliography — 71 works