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Hopi Hemis Katsina Doll, 1935 -1940

About the Item

Hemis Katsina Hopi 1940 Cottonwood root, mineral pigments, spun wool, feathers. Excellent original condition overall. An extraordinary example of the Hopi Hemis Katsina, complete with a feathered Prayer Stick on back of Katsina. Katsina dolls are visual representations of the katsinam, the essential life force of all animate beings. Traditionally, there were gifted to children in order to familiarize them with katsina songs and dances. By the early 1930’s, propelled by a growing tourist industry, workshops of artists produced carvings specifically for the non-Indigenous market. A number of katsinam are Hopi interpretations of neighbouring peoples and their respective spirit beings. Hemis derives its name from Jemez, a pueblo on the Rio Grande. Bearing presents for the entire community, the katsina plays an important role during Niman, the return ceremony marking the end of the katsinam’s visit to Hopi villages. Hemis is chiefly responsible for gifting children with tithu, small dolls used to familiarise the uninitiated with the katsinam’s appearances. Known as katsina dolls to non-Indigenous collectors, many of the carved and painted design elements reference sky elements or particular water formations. In the case of Hemis, the characteristic case mask is surmounted by an elaborate tableta shaped like a stepped unit of clouds. In Hopi cosmology, weather, conception, soil fertility, birth and plant life are closely related. The persistent impact of Hopi and Zuni katsina dolls stretches to the present day, from the Bauhaus to contemporary performance art, epitomizing the enduring legacy of Native American art on modern art and design.
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