Original Painting of Hopi Niman Ceremony (Home Dance) [SOLD]

Niman is the “going home” ceremony for the Hopi Katsinas. It is after that ceremony that the katsinam depart the Hopi reservation and return to the San Francisco Peaks until the following February when they return for the Bean Dance. Niman is also a time when Hopi people living away from their home village, return home to help with the ceremony and reunite with relatives and friends. Niman is central to Hopi religious thought and practice. It is the largest dance of the katsinam season and is truly spectacular.

The Hemis Katsinam are usually seen at the Niman (also called the Home Dance) along with the Hemismana Katsinam. The female katsinam create music with their gourds and sticks by running a sheep scapulae across the scored stick which then reverberates with a mellow sound. If one ever wanted to see a katsina dance at Hopi, this is the one to strive for.

One of Fred Kabotie’s most talented students, Raymond Naha, is known for being one of the first Native American artists to break away from the two-dimensional style of Dorothy Dunn’s Santa Fe Indian School. He had studied under Kabotie at Oraibi High School on the reservation for one year. He was very adept in presenting Hopi dances as they appear and in following detail in the Katsinam costuming. It is unfortunate that his life was cut short at the age of 41.

Provenance: From the former Balcomb Ranch Gallery.