TribalArtery
VOL. TWO, NO. FOUR, MAY 2002
Welcome to Tribal Artery, a periodic newsletter that will come out as often as we have something to say or some news to report. We expect that we will publish every month or so. Of course, we will rely on your comments as we go.
It is Memorial Day as this is written. So I ask a small indulgence for some personal thoughts. This year, Memorial Day seems to have a greater poignancy. As we reflect on the heroes from September and Afghanistan, we have the valiant warriors of earlier wars to commemorate as well. In particular, we remember those Navajo men who went off to the Pacific as Code Talkers during WWII. Their ability to confuse the enemy by speaking the language of the Dine’ is one of the more fascinating stories of that conflict. For years, this contribution was overlooked. We hope it will become widely known, since it is the subject of a recently released movie. We are privileged to be the owners of a set of Navajo carvings saluting these proud warriors. I’ve posted a picture of them in uniform as part of a color guard. Just look in the attached picture section.
While we are on the subject of Navajo people, we have learned that PBS will offer a television version of Tony Hillerman’s Skinwalkers as part of its MYSTERY! series in the fall. If you have not read Tony Hillerman, get thee to a bookstore. If you have, you will be as excited about this news as we are.
On June 7, we open a new show in the gallery entitled, "The Soul in the Stone." We are including all the new fetishes we acquired during our recent trip to the Southwest. There will be hundreds (yes, hundreds!) of very affordable fetishes available. But the real thrill is the acquisition of some high-end carvings by some of the most popular Zuni fetish carvers, such as Jeff Tsalabutie, Gibbs Othole and Dee Edaakie. If you are new to fetish carving collecting, we recommend the work of the Boone family, Lena, Evalena and Leland, the Gaspers and Jayne Quam. We visited with them during our trip. They are very accomplished carvers who work with exciting stones. Their work is getting more and more popular each day. Yet their prices are very reasonable. There are examples in the Fetish Carvings Gallery and I’ve included some in the below.
By the way, you may hear these referred to as "fetishes" without the further descriptive word, "carvings." Experts tell us that this is not strictly correct unless the carving has been blessed in a tribal ceremony. Many of the Zuni carvings that you will encounter have been carved as works of art. Beautiful and desirable as they are, according to these experts, they are not "fetishes" without the tribal blessing. But they sure are nice to own and have around your home or workplace. And they just may impart some special powers to their owners.
A FINE AUSTRALIAN DOT PAINTING FINDS A NEW HOME
Smaller dot paintings move out of the gallery to happy buyers on a regular basis. We are particularly happy, though, that one of Gabriella Possum’s major works will be going to a fortunate collector. It’s her "Bush Fire Dreaming", a 27" x 34" acrylic on canvas. If you have not been to the Australian Room, it is worth a visit. Many of the pieces that we acquired in Australia in September have been posted, including a number of prints that will go up within the next 10 days.
ONE OF OUR FAVORITE MASKS ALSO SAYS GOODBYE
The Igbo mask that has graced our home for so long has decided to go to the Executive Director of a Midwest museum. We enjoyed having it as part of our life. But we also are happy that it has gone on to a prestigious resting place. For a look the mask we are talking about, see the attachment. For a look at the many other masks that are available for purchase from our e-gallery, visit the African Room.
JULY WILL BE ANOTHER FOLK ART MONTH
In July, we will swing over to our folk art mode, with emphasis on wood carvings from the Navajo people. It will be a happy coincidence since so many of these carvings have a patriotic flavor. Just right for the Fourth of July. We’ll share some with you in the next issue of TribalArtery.
ANOTHER OF OUR FAVORITE POTTERS IS A CANDIDATE FOR IACA ARTIST OF THE YEAR
At the Indian Arts & Crafts Association Awards Dinner in April in Albuquerque, we had the pleasure of sitting at the same table with Caroline Carpio, Isleta. Caroline was announced as a winner in the pottery competition, which makes her a candidate for next year’s IACA Artist of the Year. This year it was our beloved Mary Small, Jemez, who also is a potter. And the year before that it was Pahponee, Kickapoo potter. We have long been impressed by the work of all three of these talented artists. Examples by all three are available at our Native American Room
Look for us next month and let us know if you enjoyed this issue of our newsletter.
FABULOUS FETISHES WILL BE AVAILABLE IN JUNE. TAKE A LOOK.
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Navajo Code Talkers
Color Guard by Renzo (Private Collection)
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(l) Rhodochrosite badger
by Lena Boone, (r) Fishrock mountain lion by Dan Quam
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Bush Fire Dreaming,
acrylic on canvas, by Gabriella Possum.
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Igbo mask with extensive
openwork.
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Copyright 2002 Aboriginals: Art of the First Person
