Kevin Pocheoma
White Bear
7 3/4"
H with 1 1/2" base
This Kachina was carved by
Kevin Pochoema, who is dedicated to perfection and maintaining
the traditional Hopi culture through his Kachinas. Kevin is recognized
as one of the great Kachina doll carvers of his time. He is 34
years old and has been seriously carving since he was 15. His
family is from the village of Paaqavi.
By the time he was 26, Kevin
was winning major awards at the Gallup Inter-Tribal Indian Ceremonial
and O'Odham Tash Festival. He rarely enters his dolls for judging,
as they are immediately purchased by serious collectors.
Kevin has an incredible ability
to transform his dolls, it's almost as if the spectators are
watching the Kachinas themselves. Kevin says: "I want to
make my dolls flow...I like to show scenes that relate to the
Kachina doll I'm carving." Kevin achieves this through natural
looking movement and costuming. He is a master at elaborate detail
and superior finish, which sets his work apart from other carvers.
Kevin is an expert at the
use of oil-based paints and pigments. The allows him to create
subtle variations and concentrations of color to enhance the
very strong sense of reality. It takes much experimentation to
get his color palette just right.
Kevin has carved the Bear
out of a single piece of cottonwood root. The feathers on the
head and ears are the only additions.
Even the base is highly detailed.
Kevin has carved an ancient village plaza into the cliffs as
the Bear is dancing on top. According to "Art of the Hopi"
"Detailed carvings in the bases of Kevin's wood sculptures
often relate to the ceremony in which the Kachinas appear".
Kevin Pochoema is featured
on the cover of Art of the Hopi by Lois & Jerry Jacka
and on page 67. He is also well represented in Kent McManis new
book Hopi Katsina Dolls on many pages throughout the book.
In it, Kevin states: "I keep trying to improve so I won't
carve 'just another doll'."
Kevin is from Hotevilla, Arizona
and has signed the doll: "Pochoema" on top of the base.
The White Bear depicted here
is a Hon Kachin, but is more properly described as Köcha
Honau.
"The Bear Kachina is
of such great strength that it is felt he can cure the sick.
He appears in the kachina return or Soyal of First Mesa as the
watchman or side dancer for the Chakwaina.
He may come singly or in a
group during the Palölökong Dance, and may appear
in a number of colors such as Sakwa Honau (Blue Bear)
or as illustrated - Köcha Honau (White Bear). Probably
he is most familiar in the Mixed Kachina Dance, dancing outside
the lines.
His most distinctive feature
is the presence of a bear footprint on either cheek." -Barton Wright, Kachinas: a Hopi Artist's
Documentary (114)