Gene Dawahoya
Wolf / Kweo
9 1/4"
H with 2 3/4" base
This piece is part of a special collection
we received recently and is available for a limited time.
Whenever the Deer or Antelope
Kachinas dance in the plaza, another kachina is very frequently
seen with them - the Wolf Kachina (Kweo). He is their side dancer,
and the stick he holds in his hands is said to represent trees
and bushes that he hides behind as he watches them.
"When he appears, the
Deer and the Antelope are wary because in real life he is the
hunter of antelope. After the dance it is customary for the Hopis
to offer the Wolf Kachina cornmeal or prayer feathers so that
he will use his knowledge to find and capture these game animals.
"For reason the kachina
calls forth the Hopi urge to elaborate. He is not usually [very]
colorful nor realistic and is consequently more forceful in appearance."
- Barton Wright, "Kachinas:
a Hopi artist's documentary" (164)
Gene Dawahoya is an accomplished
carver and is also the brother of Nuvadi Dawahoya, whose
carvings we also feature.
