Fine Art - Native American Paintings Paintings Diné of the Navajo Nation

Windway Feather Dance, Mountainway [SOLD]

Myron Denetclaw, Diné of the Navajo Nation Painter

Category: Paintings
Origin: Diné of the Navajo Nation
Medium: casein
Size:
12-½” x 15” image;
23-¼” x 25-¾” framed
Item # 26344

SOLD

Canyon Road sponsors a Paint Out every October for artists to set up their easels in front of the gallery which represents their work. Since we generally do not represent any living artists, we have not participated in the Paint Out until a few years ago when we were contacted by the mother of a young Dine man, who asked if her son could set up and paint in front of Adobe Gallery. We agreed. This young man has now set up in front of the gallery every year since 2016.

We purchase paintings from him when he has some available. He was in high School when we first met him, now he is a college graduate. When he brings us a painting, he provides a full description of the meaning of the painting. Here is his explanation for this painting:

Title: "Windway Feather Dance, Mountainway"

Description: The painting is a highlight of the unique and intricate sight of the nine-day winter healing ceremonial called the Dził'Kí'Jíh Hatáál (Mountainway). The ceremony, while continuing as traditionally conducted, involves a rehearsal of dancing and singing by invited singers/practitioners (medicine men/women who practice different chantways, i.e., lightningway, nightway, red antway, windway, waterway, etc.) who play a vital role in healing the mountainway ceremonial patient/'s. This painting specifically depicts the rehearsal scene of the Níyol Jíh' (Windway) branch group performing the feather dance for the Mountainway ceremony conducted on the last 6th, 7th, and 8th nights. The two dancers, brother and sister siblings, perform a series of fast lateral hop/high knee motions back and forth dance patterns, facing one another closely, charge at one another closely, reverse, and retreat. In the final lyrics of the chanting, they again face one another, yet turn towards the east direction, close to the ceremonial bonfire, and rhythmically, they evenly close the dance, the singing completely ceases.

This dance is repeated four consecutive times. Each dancer holds in each hand the áliil or wands; its purpose is to direct and motion the eagle plume to dance by itself magically simultaneously by the chorus of chanters accompanying rattles and basket drum. The áliil is symbolically made and decorated specifically for the chant-way presented in the Mountainway ceremonial. The áliil the dancers carry represents the homes of the wind people in the form of clouds. Each color represents the four cardinal directions: white-East, yellow-South, blue-West, and black-North. The decorative ribbon streamers and the dancers on each hand represent lightning; the boy carries yellow lighting, and the girl carries blue lighting. Above them is the guardian sun, its rays beaming off into the sky, representing the evening twilight, connected with symbolic rainbow beams indicating sun dog light effect. The bright yellow figure standing center within the sun is the Holy Pollen Girl.