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Art of the Southwest by Canyon Country Originals
Southern and Western Reservation
Ganado •
Klagetoh
Wide Ruins • Burntwater • Newlands
Storm Pattern
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For Northern and Eastern Reservation Rugs,
including Pictorials, Two Grey Hills, and more, click here!
Serigraph by Harrison Begay, Navajo.
Since the 1880s, Navajo weaving has evolved into a true artform. As these Navajo weavers expand their innate sense of design and harmony, their weavings are constantly improving. Today, they are the best yet. And, all indications are that the upward trend will continue into the foreseeable future. We search the Reservation on a regular basis, looking for the better weavers and their Native American rugs, and we present them here. Our emphasis is on quality and aesthetics, and a range of prices and sizes.
Like all things Navajo, the weaving of a Native American rug involves both the spiritual and temporal world. From the spiritual side, the Navajos believe that the art of weaving was passed on to them by Spider Woman, a deity of the Navajo emergence story. From a temporal view, they respond to both artistic pride and augmentation of their meager income.
To shop the fine Native American Rugs in this section, Navajo Rugs From The Southern and Western Reservaton, continue on, below.
To order, call 1-800-401-1192, 1-520-529-5545 if you
are out of the United States, or go to our
Order Page
- All dimensions are approximate. -
Item # R22 - Burntwater, woven by Jeanette Nez, Navajo.
Jeanette
has turned the simple diamond pattern into a complex pattern of subtle
Burntwater pastels, with an elaborate border. She has used a rich
combination of earth tones and pastels, warm colors including brown,
sienna, mustard and rust, accented with sparing use of rose, green,
blue and lilac. We count 14 different vegetal colors.
Size: 35" wide by 56" long.
Price: $4,100 SOLD.
Item # R42 - Burntwater, woven by Lena Gorman, Navajo.
In
this warm textile, you can clearly see Lena's elaboration of the
two-diamond element of the classic Two Grey Hills design. Using
pastels, Lena has subtly woven in the soft vegetal colors of rust,
tan, beige, brown, and rose, with aqua and blues. Weavers are
beginning to "sign" their textiles, as the potters do. You
can see Lena's logo woven into the bottom, left corner of this
beautiful textile.
Size: 36" wide by 52" long.
Price: $4,000.
Item # R132 - Burntwater, woven by Emily Blake, Navajo.
Here
is a beautiful example of the soft, pastel colors used by Burntwater
weavers. Burntwaters are typically more complex than other regional
styles. However, the distinguishing characteristic is use of pastel
colored yarns derived by using local, vegetal dyes. Here, Emily has a
strong outside border, notespirit line in upper left cornger. She
builds towards the center with multiple borders, framing a beautifully
balanced center design. You can still see the diamond pattern
influence of Ganados, logical since Burntwater is a southern neighbor
of Ganado.
Size: 25 1/2" wide by 35 1/2" long.
$1,500.
Item # R140 - Ganado, woven by Kathy Nez, Navajo.
Sometimes
called Ganado Reds, these rugs always have a red background, and this
is because Lorenzo Hubbell said so. Here is one of Kathy's renditions
of the classic Ganado Red. This is a design which originated in a much
simpler pattern invented by Hubbell for use in his printed catalog of
"Indian Blankets." Hubbell owned the trading post in Ganado
in the late 1800s. He made up "saleable" designs and had the
local Navajos weave them accordingly. The one pattern that has stayed
popular is the one you see here by Kathy. The reds and black and white
predominate because those were the colors that were easily available
at the turn of the last century. They are still popular.
Size: 32" wide by 48" long.
Price: $990 SOLD.
Item # R142 - Ganado, woven by Emma Begay, Navajo.
Here
is Emma's idea of a Ganado pattern. As carried down even to today,
Hubbell's designs featured a brilliant red background surrounded by
strong geometric crosses, diamonds, and stripes constructed with yarns
of grey, white and black. Hubbell's textiles usually featured a
central motif of one or two diamonds, sometimes a cross, with smaller
geometrics occupying the remaining spaces. Emma has studied books and
the original Hubbell patterns. If you ever visit the Hubbell Trading
Post in Ganado, now a museum, you will see some of his original design
patterns that he handed the Navajo weavers.
Size: 33" wide by 47" long.
Price: $1,500.
Item # R145 - Ganado, woven by Carolyn Littleben, Navajo.
Carolyn
has woven her interpretation of Hubbell's double diamond design.
Except for the reds, colors are obtained by mixing various colors of
natural wools--whites, blacks, grays and browns. Reds are achieved by
using aniline dyes, as the weavers used in the late 1900s. Then
anailine dye was a new and novel product, introduced to the weavers by
Hubbell.
Size: 23" wide by 47" long.
Price: $700.
Item # R136 -Tree of Life, woven by Marie Begay, Navajo.
Called
the "Tree of Life" pattern, or Bird Pictorial, it is
actually a young corn stalk, surrounded by flying birds. To the Native
American, corn is a symbol of life and well being, since it has been a
staple in their diet for ages. In this textile, Marie has included 33
birds.
Size: 22" wide x 33" long.
Price: $675 SOLD.
Item # R112 -Tree of Life, woven by Ason Yellowhair, Navajo.
Ason
Yellowhair is certainly among the top 20 living weavers on the Navajo
Nation. Last year, this famous weaver was given a "Lifetime
Achievement Award" by the Arizona State Museum, at the University
of Arizona. This is only the second such award to be given by the
Museum. Ason is famous for her birds and flowers. Here, she has woven
54 birds, 8 flowers, and the classic, tasseled corn stalk growing out
of a wedding basket–center piece of Tree of Life Rugs. Only
members of the extended Yellowhair family make bird-and-flower rugs in
the distinctive Yellowhair style. Ason has taught seven of her nine
daughters to weave, as well as two of her daughters-in-law. To explain
her choice of subject matter, she said, "birds and flowers are
like a beautiful life when the sun shines, the sky is blue, and the
birds are singing and everything is happy. Ason raises her own sheep,
cards her wool, and spins it to form the yarn in her textiles.
Size: 46" wide x 65" long.
Price: $3,200 SOLD.
Item # R90 - Pictorial, Yei-bi-chai , by Marilyn Begay, Navajo.
This
textile would be a gorgeous wall hanging. Marilyn Begay was taught to
weave by her mother, Ason Yellowhair, and Ason is probably one of 20
top weavers on the Navajo Nation. Marilyn has selected to portray a
scene from The Night Way, or Night Chant, one of the best known Navajo
healing ceremonies. Throughout this nine-day ceremony, appropriate
Navajo gods (Yeis) are implored to heal the subject. On the last
night, humans take the form of the Yeis, and stage a picturesque
dance. When they do this, the human dancers are called Yei-bi-chai.
Here, the group is led by Talking God, with Trickster bringing up the
rear. This is a heavy, well woven textile.
Size: 39" vertical by 56" horizontal.
Price: $2,800.
Item # R56-Raised Outline, woven by Eleanor Tsipai, Navajo.
Here
is an excellent example of a Raised Outline textile, now called a "New
Lands." In the Hopi/Navajo land arguments, a number of Navajo
families were moved out of the Coal Mine Mesa area, and moved into a
newly acquired extension of the Navajo Nation, roughly south of
Interstate 40, near Sanders, AZ. With the encouragement of Bruce
Burnham, the displaced weavers continued with this pattern, but change
the venue.
Size: 28" wide x 38" long.
Price: $1,150.
Item # R122 - Two-in-One, woven by Ruth Nelwood, Navajo.
In
this unique textile, Ruth has combined the classic Burntwater design,
within a classic Wide Ruins textile. Combinations such as this are
exceedingly difficult to weave, especially considering that the entire
pattern is held in the weaver's head. Symmetry must be held from side
to side, and top to bottom. Can you imagine?
Size: 26" wide by 35" long.
Price: $1,200.
Item # R123 - Two-in-One, woven by Ruth Nelwood, Navajo.
In
this two-in-one, Ruth features the classic Storm Pattern design,
within a classic Wide Ruins textile. She achieves the soft, pastel
colors by generally using vegetal dyes gathered on the Reservation.
Size: 26" wide by 35" long.
Price: $1,200.
Item # R146 - Storm Pattern, woven by Doris Duncan, Navajo.
The
Storm Pattern was first designed early in the 20th century, by famed
trader J. B. Moore and shown in his catalog. It was one of his best
sellers. The center design represents the center of the Navajo world,
with four lightening bolts radiating out to corner rectangles,
symbolizing to four sacred Navajo mountains. Between the corner
rectangles are designs redpresenting water sprites, an omen for
life-giving rain. Doris is a young weaver living in the Shiprock area.
Size: 29" wide by 44" long.
Price: $975 SOLD.
For an expansion of the Navajo weaving tradition, click below:
Click here for more on
"Navajo Weavers, Yesterday and Today."
For a short
article on Navajo Sandpaintings
and Sandpainting Textiles, click here.
- Recommended reading - Check Amazon.com. They stock most of these titles.
- Navajo Weaving, Three Centuries of Change,by Kate Peck Kent, School of American Research Press, $18.95 (paper);
- Treasures of the Navajo,by Theda Bassman and Gene Balzer, Northland Publishing, $12.95 (paper);
- A Guide To Navajo Weaving,by Kent McManis and Robert Jeffries, Treasure Chest Books, $9.95 (paper);
- Navajo Rugs, How to Find, Evaluate, Buy and Care for Them,by Don Dedera, Northland Publishing, $14.95 (paper);
