KACHINA DOLLS: The Art of Hopi Carvers

University of Arizona Press, 1991. 1st Edition 1st Printing. Hardcover. As New/Good+. Color & B&W illustrations throughout. CONDITION: UNREAD, but not quite perfect, 1991 Univ. of Arizona Press hardcover (beige boards) & dust jacket (Good+, in mylar cover), first edition, first printing. PROBLEM: The DJ shows edge wear (see scans) top edge with some sunning to spine bleeding into back DJ panel. (I have done a bit of cosmetic work on the DJ - not shown - and it does look better.) B&W drawings and illustrations along with color plates of the completed Kachinas. Interior clean & tight. CONTENT: Much has been written about the popular kachina dolls carved by the Hopi Indians of northern Arizona, but little has been revealed about the artistry behind them. Now Helga Teiwes describes the development of this art form from early traditional styles to the action-style kachina dolls made popular in galleries throughout the world, and on to the kachina sculptures that have evolved in the last half of the 1980s. Teiwes explains the role of the Katsina spirit in Hopi religion and that of the kachina doll—the carved representation of a Katsina—in the ritual and economic life of the Hopis. In tracing the history of the kachina doll in Hopi culture, she shows how these wooden figures have changed since carvers came to be influenced by their marketability among Anglos and how their carving has been characterized by increasingly refined techniques. Unique to this book are Teiwes's description of the most recent trends in kachina doll carving and her profiles of twenty-seven modern carvers, including such nationally known artists as Alvin James Makya and Cecil Calnimptewa. Enhancing the text are more than one hundred photographs, including twenty-five breathtaking color plates that bring to life the latest examples of this popular art form.