Navajo American Flock Pictorial Rug - Cecelia Descheny (#003)
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"An American Flock"
14 1/2" x 20"
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The earliest surviving documented Navajo weaving portraying pictorial
images is the Chief White Antelope blanket found in 1864 at the Sand
Creek Massacre site in Colorado. Navajo textile scholars Kate Peck
Kent, Joe Ben Wheat, Kathleen Whitaker and Nancy J. Blomberg by way of
written records have identified pictorial elements in Navajo blankets
as early as 1840 and it is most probable that images appeared in Navajo
blankets before that time.
Pictorial representations in Navajo
weaving have branched into several categories based on secular or
sacred images. Navajo religious figures such as yeis, the Navajo holy
people, and other elements from Navajo sandpainting art as well as
depictions of the sandpaintings themselves began to emerge in the late
1800’s. This sacred imagery has sinced evolved into substyles of
Navajo weaving known as Yei or Yeibichai rugs and Sandpainting rugs
which will be addressed separately.
Today, pictorial weavings
draw ideas from Navajo traditional and contemporary lifestyle as well
as aspects of contemporary culture. Many collectors favor romantic
representations of Navajo life featuring hooghans (the Navajo
traditional home), wagons, livestock and traditionally dressed Navajo
people placed within the red rock landscape of the Navajo homeland,
Dinetah. Modern conveniences such as pickup trucks, TV antennas, and
satellite dishes have crept into the pictorial iconography.
Another
popular image is the Tree of Life. borrowed from early Armenian imagery
bearing the same name. Navajo Tree of Life weavings represent one of
the best examples of how a foreign idea can be introduced into Navajo
artistic awareness and reformulated to work within Navajo cultural
expression. Originally, the birds represented the spirits of the
dead. During the Christian era, the tree and birds became a symbol of
the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ. In the Navajo way of
thinking, the tree became a stalk of corn growing from the sacred
ceremonial basket, a symbol of life and the birds represent abundance
and balance in nature.
Navajo pictorial rugs are now
recognized as true Navajo folk expression, a reflection of historic
events whether the introduction of the train to the reservation or the
tragedy of 9/11. Mickey Mouse, Santa Clause and Elvis have all found
their way into Navajo pictorial imagery. This category represents the
most diverse arena of Navajo weaving, accessible to any collector who
hopefully approaches these visions of Navajo and contemporary life with
both a sense of humor and a healthy dose of respect.
About the artist:
See all items by Cecelia DeschenyRelated categories:
Navajo Pictorial Rugs See all items in this categoryRelated legends:
Sheep
The gods,
of course, had had the animals from the beginning of time. When they arranged
the world and planned the pattern of hte stars in the sky, they first laid the
glittering objects out on a sheepskin. The Sun, father of the war gods, possessed
a flock of sheep in four colors. The beautiful and human myth of the Shooting
Chant tells how he offered these to his twin children when they had sought and
found him. More about this legend
Weaving
After the
medicine woman told the people about the prayersticks she told them that there
was a place in the underworld where two rivers crossed. It was called ni tqin'kae
tsosi, fine fiber cotton (Indian hemp). There were two persons who brought the
seed of that plant, they were spiders. They said that the people were to use the
plant instead of skins for their clothing. So this seed was planted in the earth? More about this legend
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