Hopi Pueblo Katsina Night Kiva Scene [SOLD]

When one visits the Hopi Villages to witness a Katsina Dance in the plaza, it is generally the culmination of a 9-day ceremony that has been secretly on-going in the kiva and not open to the public. This is the scene pictured here by Naha. The katsinas are entering and exiting the kiva for ceremonies in preparation to the events of the season.

Naha was an extraordinary artist and especially adept at painting katsina ceremonies. His attention to the minutest details of the costuming was astonishing. That is indisputable if one examines this painting. Katsina ceremonies were the favored subject for Naha.

Raymond Naha possessed a great natural talent for art as noted by Fred Kabotie, his art teacher at Oraibi High School on the Hopi Reservation. He received further art instruction during his stay at the Phoenix Indian School, which was the end of his formal art education. His progress from then was purely self motivated.

This painting probably dates to the decade of the 1960s. It is beautifully matted and framed using acid-free matboard and a wood frame.

Provenance: From the personal collection of Frances Balcomb, owner of Balcomb