Naha, Rainy – Large Jar with Crow Mother, Warrior Maiden, Sokyok Whuti, and Grandmother Katsina
$ 2,500.00
Stunning! This new large jar by Rainy Naha is intricately designed and painted. On this jar, she has four female Katsinas. There is a Crow Mother, Soyok Whuti, Grandmother Katsina, and He-e-e (Warrior Maiden). Each is tightly painted and distinctive. Rainy said she uses female figures to represent Hopi women. She said this jar, in particular, shows the growth of women from the young warrior (He-e-e) to the grandmother. The is the wisdom on the Crow Mother and the discipline of the Sokyok Whuti. The neck of the jar has the eternity band seen on the work of her mother, Helen Naha. Check out the feathers on the figures, as they are painted in the style of her hallmark! Separating each of the Katsinas are a series of geometric designs from rain to four directions, and clouds. Separating the figures are band with different designs from classic Hopi-Tewa pottery. Note the very intricate checkerboard and rain designs, along with all the various colors! The jar is painted with various clay slips along with bee-weed, which is black. It was traditionally fired and it is signed on the bottom with a feather 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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Stunning! This large jar by Rainy Naha is intricately designed and painted. On this jar, she has painted a Butterfly Maiden or Pahlik Mana on one side. She has a large tablita headdress, which is very intricately painted and designed. Note the feathers on the ends of the tablita, which are painted in her style of hallmark! The opposite side has a Bee Kasina (Momo). The Bee katsina is surrounded by additional bees!
Bee (Momo) appears in Mixed Dances and the Water Serpent Ceremony. He is a side dancer and focuses his attention on the children. He stings them by shooting tiny, blunt arrows with his little bow. If the child cries out in fear, Momo squirts a little water on the supposed wound and offers a tiny cup of honey from his headpiece. As part of the Powamu, Momo and the other Katsinam are welcomed back and asked for their aid in bringing spring and new growth to the land. In addition to his antennae, Momo’s headpiece is crowned with a cluster of stalks which may end in flowers or fruit, or a stand of corn stalks. The Bee Katsina brings with him the gift of fertility for plants without which the people would starve.
Separating the two figures are bands of Hopi-Tewa designs. Each of the squares has a different design from classic Hopi-Tewa pottery. Note the very intricate checkerboard and rain designs, along with all the various colors! So why the Awatovi designs? Rainy’s mother, Helen “Feather Woman” Naha, lived on a ranch in the Jeddito Valley, below the Awatovi Ruins and Helen was the first revivalist of their black and white pottery. Rainy has continued this revival with her innovative designs. The jar is painted with various clay slips along with bee-weed, which is black. It was traditionally fired and it is signed on the bottom with a feather 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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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.