Traditionally, katsina dolls are used as teaching tools. They are the carved representations of the Katsinam, the spirit messengers of the universe. The Katsinam come to Hopi in the form of clouds, which bear life-giving rain. The Katsinam appear in physical form in Hopi villages between the winter solstice and the beginning of the monsoon season in July. Different Katsinam represent different aspects of life; for example, the Soyoko Katsinam help teach children proper behavior. Misbehaving children are threatened with being given to the Soyoko, a threat that most often instills a great desire on the part of the child to correct his or her behavior!
The dolls are given to Hopi girls, beginning in infancy, to help them learn about their responsibilities as women in the community. The dolls are carved by initiated Hopi men using cottonwood roots; in earlier days, all katsina dolls were colored with natural dyes, which made them non-toxic for a teething baby to handle. The dolls created for the open market, however, sport modern dyes and paints.
While both the deeper meaning of a katsina doll and the material from which is carved - the root of the cottonwood tree - is unchanged through the centuries, carvers have transformed the outward representation of a katsina doll over time. Over the years, as more non-Hopi collectors became enamored with katsina dolls, and as power tools like Dremel rotary tools became available, Hopi katsina doll carvers also became more creative. The formerly flat doll carvings are now full-figured, with lifelike movement, brighter colors and elaborate regalia. Some contemporary carvers make the cottonwood root from which the dolls are carved seem to move as if it is the drape of a robe or a rain sash. Another facet of katsina doll carving is that young carvers like Ryon Polequaptewa are reviving the carving of more traditional dolls. Some of Polequaptewa's dolls will be on display during the exhibition.
Like the changing nature of katsina doll carving, the Heard’s collections come from many different sources and eras. The older collection dates as far back as the early 1900s and contains pieces from the Fred Harvey Company Collection. The company acquired katsina dolls through three major sources including C.L. Owen, an anthropologist with the Field Museum in Chicago. The Heard also has items from five other collections in its possession, including that of Sen. Barry Goldwater. The famous Goldwater Katsina Doll Collection bridges the early years of the 20th century and reaches into the mid-century years, as does the Joann Phillips Collection, which is rich in mid-20th century carvings.
Selections from these older collections join the more contemporary carvings of the Sid and Ruth Schultz collection to create a visual history of katsina doll carving. The Schultz collection incorporates the best of recent carvings by artists who fully explore the use of modern carving tools and many distinctive treatments.
However, even though katsina dolls created for the public have evolved into more of an artform, the ancient spirituality of the katsina religion still endures and is nurtured in Hopi communities. The ardor of collectors for the dolls that have been used to teach proper behavior and what it means to be a Hopi for millennia also endures.
|© 2010 HEARD MUSEUM. 2301 N. CENTRAL AVE. PHOENIX, AZ 85004 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED|