Original Painting “Harvest Chorale” [SOLD]

Joe Maktima is a Hopi / Laguna Pueblo artist who was born in Winslow, Arizona in 1962. He graduated from the Institute of American Indian Arts (IAIA) in 1985. In 1999, one of his paintings was chosen for the Santa Fe Indian Market poster. His work can be found in the Eiteljorg Museum in Indianapolis, Indiana, as well as numerous galleries world-wide.  He was part of an exhibit in 2012 at IAIA called 50/50-Fifty Artists in Fifty Years.

Drummers and singers are an essential component of Pueblo dances. The sound of the drums and the singer’s voices guide the movement of the dancers as they offer prayers of hope for rain and expectations of a fruitful harvest. The beat of the drum mirrors the heartbeat of mother earth, and the rattle evokes the sound of rain falling. As the singers offer their prayers in song, the dancers offer their prayers in their dance steps.

In this spectacular painting, Maktima has depicted three members of the chorus as they participate in a traditional Pueblo ceremony. The artist has rendered a traditional event in a cubist, modern way. The painting shows the influence of Maktima’s time at IAIA where he was introduced to the work of Picasso and other modernists. Picasso’s “Three Musicians” at the Museum of Modern Art in New York shows three musicians in flat, boldly colored, abstract shapes. Maktima’s trio is similarly rendered using a combination of geometric shapes and lively color in a flat composition; but the artist has not forgotten to include traditional elements of the Pueblo culture. While the image may be thoroughly modern, there is no mistaking it is of a Pueblo ceremony. The drum, the rattles, the clothing, moccasins and turquoise jewelry are all uniquely Pueblo.

This painting is an excellent example of Joe Maktima’s ability to create new, modern artistic forms while retaining and honoring the traditional aspects of Pueblo culture.

Condition: original condition

Recommended Reading: Southwest Art Magazine, May 1991

Provenance: the painting was purchased from the artist at the 1998 Santa Fe Indian Market by the current owners, Marvin and Betty Rubin