Original Hopi Painting of Harvester Kachinas by Raymond Naha [SOLD]

This original painting of three katsinas was created by Hopi Pueblo artist Raymond Naha.  It features a trio of Harvester Katsinas performing their ceremonial dance.  The Harvester Katsina is one of many participants in the late spring Corn Dances.  Here, we see three of them.  They are identical save for slight variations in body paint.  The central katsina faces the viewer directly while the other two turn in toward him.

Raymond Naha is known for having created large and elaborate scenes featuring detailed landscapes and accurate depictions of the Hopi Pueblo Reservation.  Often, he’d paint scenes that were set at night, which was undoubtedly challenging.  For this piece, he returned to the traditional style of the early Hopi painters by leaving the landscape out and focusing only on the katsinas themselves.  His work is gentle and beautiful, with soft applications of bold colors creating depth and texture.  Careful work with light and shadow enhances the image even further.  With this piece, Raymond Naha proved himself to be as adept with traditional styles as he was with his well-documented variations.

The painting is signed R. Naha in lower right.  It is framed beautifully, using an intricately carved frame and wide fabric mat with a black interior band.

Raymond Naha (1933-1975) grew up being influenced by some of the most innovative Native American artists of his time. He was born on December 5, 1933, at Polacca, which is at the foot of the Hopi Reservation’s First Mesa.  He was the son of Daisy Hooee Nampeyo and Ray Naha, making him the great-grandson of famous potter Nampeyo of Hano. During his life he was influenced by a diverse group of people, beginning with his mother.  Hooee left Hopi at a young age after Anita Baldwin, a wealthy benefactress from California, offered to help pay for eye surgery to rid her of cataracts. Baldwin sent Hooee to school at L'Ecole des Beaux Arts in Paris, where she studied sculpture and painting. Eventually Baldwin took Hooee on an around-the-world tour to see other kinds of art.  Hooee was Naha’s first teacher, and her influence shows in the European characteristics apparent in his paintings.  He exhibited widely and won numerous awards, including the Indian Arts Fund in Santa Fe in 1962. He died in 1975, leaving behind a large body of work.

Condition: excellent condition

Provenance: this Original Hopi Painting of Harvester Kachinas by Raymond Naha is from a private Santa Fe collection

Recommended Reading: Southwest Indian Painting: a changing art by Clara Lee Tanner

Relative Links: Native American Paintings, Fred Kabotie, Hopi Pueblo, Raymond Naha, Hopi Pueblo Painter, Daisy Hooee Nampeyo, Nampeyo of Hano