Authentic Vintage HOPI KACHINA (Katsina) “Wolf\" by CHESTER POLEYESTEWA
![Authentic Vintage HOPI KACHINA (Katsina) “Wolf\](img-large/g/C78AAOSwo4pYaAbe/s-l1600/Authentic-Vintage-HOPI-KACHINA-Katsina-Wolf-by-CHE.jpg "Authentic Vintage HOPI KACHINA (Katsina) “Wolf\")
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Authentic Vintage HOPI KACHINA (Katsina) “Wolf\" by CHESTER POLEYESTEWA:
$375.00
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Authentic Vintage HOPI KACHINA (Katsina) “Wolf\" BY NATIVE AMERICAN ARTIST CHESTER POLEYESTEWA, unsigned.
This Kachina is 10 1/2” tall x 6” wide.
Unsigned by Native American artist Chester Poleyestewa- This Kachina is carved of Cottonwood root. Chester is known for painting his kachinas with natural pigments which have temper added that gives a soft stipled effect and a softer color, almost making the kachinas look as if they were made of clay. His kachinas are also known for their simple and nicely rounded lines.
Purchased in Santa Fe, New Mexico gallery in the mid 70’s by my husband and has been in storage for over 30 years. It is in great vintage condition, a bit dusty with drying age crackles to paint around the ears. This katchina is free standing but was made to be hung on a wall. The original string is still attached to the head of the doll behind the head feathers
The wolf kachina appears in the mixed dance and the water serpent ceremony. He is a side dancer in the Soyohim dances. The wolf is considered a great pack hunter who helps and guides the hunters on large combined hunts. After the dances the Wolf is offered cornmeal or ceremonial prayer feathers, so the tribes may learn from him and secure game on their hunt. Central to the traditional religion of the Hopi people of the Northern Arizona are Kachinas. A Kachina (Katsina) is a supernatural being relied upon to provide rain, fertility, health, and well-being. While kachinas play a role in many of the Pueblo societies, the Hopi are most noted and prolific today in kachina doll carving.
Chester Poleyestewa is a well-established carver and has a unique identifier in his work - his carvings are often thick and squat, not unlike the human figures portrayed by the famed Columbian painter Fernando Botero. In addition, his pigments are peculiar to him: the tones are very pastel, made so with the addition of tempra paint that also creates a \'stippling\' effect to the paint texture. He is a Hopi Artist who carves only in the traditional style, a style that is more similar to that of kachinas of the early 1800’s: arms tucked close to the body and well thought out adornment. This differs from the intricately carved kachinas that are heavily carved with exaggerated motion.Kachina dolls were and are made by Hopi uncles and fathers for their daughters and nieces so they would learn to recognize the dancers’ masks during ceremonies, and the lore behind them.
Chester’s dolls range from $350 to $7,500.
More about the Artist
Hopi carver Chester Polyestewa has been making Kachinas since he was a young boy. His Kachinas are made in the old, traditional manner using cottonwood roots and the same style that the Hope people have given to their own children for centuries. They are painted with natural dyes and mineral paints that he makes himself. The finishing touches are beautiful feathers, Angora goat hair and deerskin. Chester is known for his exceptional feather work. He is a well-known carver whose work is sought after by collectors around the world.
A 3rd Mesa Hopi artist from the Hopi village of Hotevilla, this noted carver is deeply respectful of the traditions of his people. His kachinas are carved from dead cottonwood root and are in the same style used by the Hopi people for past centuries. His tools are a flint knife and a potter’s polishing stone. Using old techniques, he makes natural vegetal dyes and mineral paints made of copper, choke cherry berries, alkaline, jet and coal ash for color and adding a temper to resist fading over time. With angola goat hair, doeskin and duck feathers, he completes the kachina. These katsina are the type still carved for Hopi children today and can stand alone or be hung on the wall.
He is a well-known carver whose work is enthusiastically sought after by collectors around the world. Barry Goldwater collected pieces by Chester’s father which he donated to the Heard Museum. Other collectors include: President George Bush, Lorne Greene, Wayne Newton, Larry Hageman, R.C.Gorman, the Bass Brothers of Texas, the late gallerist Elaine Horwich and Anselm Bischoff of Bischoff’s Gallery. Mr. Poleyestewa maintains close relationships with many collectors: one Wyoming rancher opens his property to Chester for harvesting the cottonwood, another collector raises exotic birds such as macaws and parrots and sends him naturally shed, legal feathers.
Kachina dolls were and are made by Hopi uncles and fathers for their daughters and nieces so they would learn to recognize the dancers\' masks during ceremonies, and the lore behind them. In the Hopi culture, which is matrilineal, the one thing the women are not permitted to do is to participate in Kachina ceremonies and dances in the Kivas although it is the aunts who teach the nieces and nephews the specific characters and their importance in the ceremonies. In fact, in Hopi dances, female Kachinas are actually represented by male dancers. The women are not allowed to take part in the kiva and dance ceremonies where the men lend their bodies to the spirit of the Katsinas, dress as the spiritual beings and perform exact dances that have been passed down for centuries to bring blessings to the people.
Primarily, the doll is hung on the wall or from the rafters of the house so that it may be seen at all times. Putting away the dolls so they are not damaged also teaches respect for the child’s belongings. The term ”kachina” refers to the mask dancer in the Pueblo village, or to the Spirit, which the dancer impersonates. Even though the painting of the costume and the body of the doll is important, it was the accuracy of the mask features that had to be as perfect as possible. This may explain why the earlier dolls were accurate in detailed outline, often with mere suggestions of arms and legs.
Katsinas were meant to be toys, as well as learning tools, so Poleyestewa\'s versions are adorable, seemingly cuddly, and very appealing - even the ogres. Another feature of his instantly recognizable style is the use of natural earth colors, which coat the underlying wood completely, and result in a soft, pastel-like palette unlike any other artist\'s.
Mr. Poleyestewa did not intend to follow in his father’s footsteps as a carver. He completed his studies at a Bureau of Indian Affairs school in Oklahoma then went on to Arizona State University to study communications and broadcast journalism. In a circuitous route he was lead back to his carving and his roots. None of his 3 sons carve and one is a broadcast journalist. Chester now enjoys the attention of his 13 grandchildren.
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Authentic Vintage HOPI KACHINA (Katsina) “Wolf\" by CHESTER POLEYESTEWA:
$375.00