Johnson Antonio (1931- )

In the 1990s, images of Johnson Antonio's dolls began to appear in newspapers and magazines across the country, and he has received favorable reviews wherever his art has been shown.  The Rosenaks stated that when they first met Antonio in 1985, he was driving a horse-drawn wagon.  Through sales of his carvings, he soon bought a blue shag-carpeted Chevy van, large enough for his family of eight children.

The Rosenaks say that he is the most successful of the Navajo carvers and an important role model for younger artists.  Antonio is from the northwestern corner of New Mexico called the Bisti.  Following high school, he went to work for the Union Pacific Railroad.  He said "They picked me up in a bus at the trading post, and took me off to lay steel.  It was hard work, and when the laying was done in the fall, they'd take me home again.  I'd collect unemployment till they'd come for me in the spring."  In 1974, Antonio quit the railroad job and returned home to heard sheep and goats.

In 1982 or 1983, Antonio picked up some cottonwood in a wash near Farmington, took it home and just started carving.  This was the beginning of a new career.

Recommended Reading: Navajo Folk Art by Chuck and Jan Rosenak.

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