Delwyn Harvey
Pronghorn
Antelope
6 3/4"
H with 1/2" base
Like most of the other game
animals, this Antelope / Pronghorn, or Chof, kachina dances for
the increase of his kind. "When he appears, whether in the
kiva or as a group in the plaza, it is in the hope that more
of his kind will be around for harvesting by the Hopis.
The Hopis may offer him cornmeal
and prayer feathers and explicity state the wish that he will
remain and allow them to take some members of the Antelope family.
The stick that he holds in his hands represent the front legs
of the animal when he walks or dances."
- Barton Wright, Kachinas: a Hopi
Artist's Documentary (165)
Delwyn Harvey, "Wea"
(One of a kind), was born on the Hopi reservation in 1965. He
is a member of the Kachina Crow Clan. Delwyn has been carving
Hopi kachinas since 1978. He is a self taught artist.
Delwyn is also related to
Nuvadi Dawahoya (brother-in-law), who is a master carver in his
own right.
Like other contemporary kachina
carvers, Delwyn hand carves cottonwood root into magnificent
full bodied kachina dolls with a simple tool like a pocket knife.
His carvings are carved with extreme precision and detail.
He applies acrylic paints
to his dolls and paints them very carefully because it is essential
for the Hopi people to represent the kachina as accurately as
possible. Many of his dolls are carved from one continuous piece
of cottonwood. Some of his dolls are sought by collectors all
over the world. Delwyn signs his dolls "D. Harvey."
