Naha, Rainy – Jar with Eight Tumbling Eagles
$ 1,800.00
This is a classic jar by Rainy Naha. The jar is coil-built and thin-walled. This design, which included “interlocking” or “tumbling” birds, originated from Rainy Naha. This piece has a very round shoulder and a sloping neck. Instead of the hummingbirds or parrots, she painted tumbling eagles. It is a striking use of the clay and design. The shape allows both the top and bottom eagle to be easily seen. The piece is fully polished with a white clay slip and then there are four sections of interlocking above the shoulder and five below, for a total of ten. Each bird is painted with various Hopi-Tewa designs and then additional clay slips for the color. Note the variety of designs in the birds and the four directional color sets creating “feathers”. This is a striking piece that is fully painted. Rainy uses bee-weed (black) and natural clay slips for her colors. The jar is traditionally fired. Rainy learned to make pottery from her mother, Helen “Featherwoman” Naha. The jar is signed on the bottom with the feather hallmark and “Rainy”. Rainy has won numerous awards for her pottery at Santa Fe Indian Market and the Heard Market and her work continues to be a creative inspiration in Hopi-Tewa pottery.
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This is a classic jar by Rainy Naha. The jar is coil-built and thin-walled. This design, which included “interlocking” or “tumbling” birds, originated from Rainy Naha. This piece has a very round shoulder and a sloping neck. Instead of the hummingbirds or parrots, she painted tumbling eagles. It is a striking use of the clay and design. The shape allows both the top and bottom eagle to be easily seen. The piece is fully polished with a white clay slip and then there are four sections of interlocking above the shoulder and five below, for a total of ten. Each bird is painted with various Hopi-Tewa designs and then additional clay slips for the color. Note the variety of designs in the birds and the four directional color sets creating “feathers”. This is a striking piece that is fully painted. Rainy uses bee-weed (black) and natural clay slips for her colors. The jar is traditionally fired. Rainy learned to make pottery from her mother, Helen “Featherwoman” Naha. The jar is signed on the bottom with the feather hallmark and “Rainy”. Rainy has won numerous awards for her pottery at Santa Fe Indian Market and the Heard Market and her work continues to be a creative inspiration in Hopi-Tewa pottery.
Brand
Naha, Rainy (1949-2026)
Rainy Naha
Rainy Naha learned to make pottery from her mother, Helen "Featherwoman" Naha, and Rainy was the granddaughter of Hopi-Tewa pottery matriarch Paqua Naha, the first "Frogwoman." The traditional designs of her pottery go back to the early works made by Paqua. Her sister Sylvia and brother Burel Naha are also well-known potters, and they use much the same styles and colors as Rainy. Each piece of Rainy's work is made in the traditional hand-coiled method, then shaped, sanded, and polished before painting with bee-weed (black) and native clay slips and native fired. Rainy was an innovative voice among Hopi-Tewa potters. She won numerous awards, including "Best of Pottery" at Santa Fe Indian Market in 2007. She signed her pottery with the traditional feather hallmark used by her mother and then added her first name.