Derrick Hayah is from First
Mesa, the village of Walpi, and is of the Rabbit and Tobacco
clans. He has been carving for nearly 16 years and learned from
his uncles, including Gary Hayah. He is also the older brother
of Godfrey Hayah.
His work is some of the fastest
selling artwork we feature. They are great figures with real
value at very reasonable prices. Be sure to take a look at the
rest of Derrick's work in the gallery area.
Derrick has done a nice, clean
job with this figure, as he does with all of his increasingly
popular work.
These are the carvers we're
focused on most - the ones which help bring the figure to life
- almost as if the onlooker is their in the plaza with them.
Derrick is truly one of these.
As one of the younger generation of carvers, he has quickly and
skillfully responded to the demand that more and more serious
collectors are placing upon the art.
His work has strong visual
appeal, as he is not afraid to use bold, bright colors, and his
bases always have something extra.
"This is a side dancer,
an accompanying dancer to the Supai Kachina. He may appear at
Second and/or Third Mesa but would probably be costumed differently
at different villages.
"The Supai people came
to trade with the Hopi a long time ago. The Supai, when they
left, took with them 2 Hopi maidens. A Hopi 'bum' was sent out
to rescue the maidens. He was accompanied by a Kachina who gave
him a test to perform.
The 'bum' was to go and hunt
for a big horn sheep. While the 'bum' was gone, the Kachina went
out to the Supai camp and threw the Supai guard off a cliff.
The Supai lost his head in the fall and the Kachina then returned
to the village holding the Supai's head and singning.
The 'bum' returned to where
the Kachina had been and, not finding him there, he went to the
Supai camp, rescued the girls and returned to the village in
union with a group of these Kachinas."
- Ricks, J. Brent, et al., Kachinas:
Spirit Beings of the Hopi (130)