Coolidge Roy
Jr.
Dawa / Sun
9" H
with 1 1/2" base
Coolidge Roy Jr. and his wife
Juanita live on Third Mesa in Oraibi, Arizona. Coolidge has long
been famous for his magnificently beautiful Eagle Dancer Kachina
dolls.
Coolidge's father was a carver,
too, as are his brothers and sons. Other fine examples of Coolidge's
work can be found in most books on Hopi art including Hopi
Kachina Dolls and their carvers by Theda Bassman and Erik
Bromberg's The Hopi Approach to the Art of Kachina Doll Carving.
He was born on August 4, 1950
and has been carving for well over 30 years. His work is well
known and can be recognized easily because of his unique style.
One of the most noticeable aspects of his carvings is the "natural"
coloration that he achieves by using only very faint pigments.
He likens his experise unto
a professor or doctor who has spent their whole life learning
their profession, and it shows in his work.
Coolidge has a lot of respect
for his tradition and is extremely sensitive to it. He will not
carve certain figure who "the elders" have warned against
- concerned that it might bring misfortune to a friend or family
member.
"Most of the time, when
I am carving," he said, "I sing a song, a special song
for each carving. The songs that I sing are the songs the Kachinas
dance to. It's their song."
He also has a tradition of
gathering up his shavings and taking them to a special place
where he leaves them and lets the wind carry them away.
In addition to his Eagle Dancers,
another favorite is the Sun Face or Dawa. This figure
represents "father sun," or the Creator.
According to Barton Wright,
"the Sun Kachina is a representation of the spirit of the
Sun, though on occasion be called the Sun Shield Kachina. He
appears in a role very similar to that of the Nakiachop or Talavai,
standing to the side with a spruce tree in his left hand and
a bell in his right. Also, he may appear in a Mixed Dance with
the flute in his left hand that is associated with him in many
myths. He is not often personated." -
Kachinas: a Hopi Artist's Documentary (124)
Here he dances with rattles
in both hands as he faces straight on. Coolidge has done a nice
job of detailing the feathered headdress as well as the flowing
sash and belts. This is another "classic" Coolidge
Roy Jr. piece.
