Classic Hopi and Zuni Kachina Figures
Photographer Andrea Portago saw her first kachina in the early seventies in the studio of George Terasaki, from whom her friend and collaborator Andy Warhol was buying Native American art. When Alan Kessler's collection of kachinas was auctioned at Sotheby's in 1997, an extraordinary collection of classic kachina figures was unveiled that served as the impetus for Portago's exploration of the carvings. Presented here are classic-era (1880s-1940s) Hopi and Zuni carved dolls that have rarely been displayed. Portago gracefully photographed these rare figures using available light so as not to distort their colors, and to reveal their drama and passion.
Guide to Navajo Rugs
Describes and depicts the seventeen most common Navajo rug styles, and includes quotes by some of the finest weavers crafting rugs today. Photos of rugs from Hubbell Trading Post National Historic Site by George H. H. Huey.
Indian Rock Art of SW
This comprehensive view of carvings and paintings on stone by Native Americans from 200 B.C. through the nineteenth century surveys the rock art of Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, northern Mexico, and west Texas, providing an incomparable visual record of Southwest Indian culture, religion, and society.
Rock carvings and paintings are important sources in the archaeological and historical interpretation of Southwest Indians. Rock art reflects the cosmic and mythic orientation of the culture that produced it, and understanding of prehistoric peoples, both hunters and gatherers and the Hohokam, Anasazi, Mogollon, and Fremont cultures, and the Pueblo, Navajo, and Apache Indians. Culturally significant events such as the shift in prehistoric times from spear and atlatl to the bow, or, in the historic period, the introduction of the horse into the Southwest, are recorded in rock art.
The illustrations--thirty-two color plates, nearly 250 photographs, and numerous line drawings--bring together in one volume petroglyphs and rock paintings that are scattered over thousands of miles of desert and mesa, giving the reader an overview of Indian rock art that would be nearly impossible to achieve in the field.
Indian Rock Art of the Southwest examines from an archaeological perspective the rich legacy of stone drawings and carvings preserved throughout the Southwest. Professional and amateur archaeologists and historians, as well as the general reader with an interest in Indian art, will find this volume a valuable resource.
Navajo Rugs Essential Guide
An introduction to collecting and caring for Navajo rugs and woven art
Rock Art of the Southwest
The who, what, where, when, and how of rock-art. This richly illustrated book will guide you to 28 outstanding rock-art sites in seven states, and teach you about art styles and the cultural groups that created them. Includes a resource guide to continue your exploration.
Southwestern Pottery A-Z
When this book first appeared in 1996, it was "Pottery 101," a basic introduction to the subject. It served as an art book, a history book, and a reference book, but also fun to read, beautiful to look at, and filled with good humor and good sense. After twenty years of faithful service, it's been expanded and brought up-to-date with photographs of more than 1,600 pots from more than 1,600 years. It shows every pottery-producing group in the Southwest, complete with maps that show where each group lives. Now updated, rewritten, and re-photographed, it's a comprehensive study as well as a basic introduction to the art.
Spider Womans Gift
At Canyon de Chelly, in the heart of the Navajo Nation, stands an eight-hundred-foot sandstone rock formation known as Spider Rock. According to Diné oral history, this sacred place is where Spider Woman makes her home. For centuries, her gift of weaving has provided the Diné with a constant means of sustenance.
Turquoise Unearthed
In the American Southwest, turquoise is a highly prized gemstone with great cultural significance. Author Joe Dan Lowry is recognized worldwide as a leading expert on the subject, and Turquoise Unearthed: An Illustrated Guide is the definitive resource for rock hounds and serious collectors alike. Lowry describes the fascinating history of turquoise mining in the American Southwest and reveals the astonishing variety of colors and forms that make this a gemstone like no other. Among Native American peoples of the Southwest, turquoise is especially prized, with blue stones symbolizing Father Sky and greener ones evoking Mother Earth. This lavishly illustrated volume also features some of the finest examples of antique and contemporary Southwest Indian turquoise jewelry.
Turquoise, Water, Sky
This book provides an overview of the uses of turquoise in native arts of the Southwest, beginning with the earliest people who mined and processed the stone for use in jewelry, on decorative objects, and as a powerful element in ceremony. In the past, as now, turquoise was valued for its color and beauty but also for its symbolic nature: sky, water, health, protection, abundance. The book traces historical and contemporary jewelry made by Navajo, Zuni, Hopi, and Santo Domingo artisans, and the continuously inventive ways the stone has been worked.