Sunday, February 17, 2013

Rug Of The Week - Bears On Star Mountain by Ella Yazzie

by John Aldrich

The bear is a potent figure in Navajo culture. One that conveys significant power but yet should be approached with caution. As such it is not a theme that is often woven into rugs.

Ella Yazzie, however, has been on a bit of a bear frenzy of late. With her latest contribution to the rug catalog we now have four of her bear rugs in our inventory.

The latest is titled Bears On Star Mountain:

This rug measures 18" x 25" and is priced at $350. The catalog listing is 7180.

The other three bear rugs in our catalog are 7186, 7358 and 7590.

Ella is part of the Teesto food run. When most of us think of the turmoil surrounding the relocation that followed the Hopi-Navajo land dispute, we think of the Big Mountain area of the reservation. But Teesto, on the southern edge of the Hopi reservation, is another area that was greatly impacted.

As a result of this tragic chapter in Native American history, many families were divided. Ella's mother, Desbah, is part of our Program but attends the food run at Sanders which was one of the principal relocation areas. Ella still lives in the Teesto area and attends that food run.

Spirit Mountain is a butte in the Teesto area where bears can be seen. Ella has made this the focal point of these four rugs which we now feature.

The above photo was taken at the Teesto food run in the spring of 2011. Ella donated this rug to the Program on that occasion.

To see more rugs, new and old, visit the Rug Catalog.

See this 2010 post for more information about the rug catalog.

Notes: Every effort has been made to photograph and present the rugs with as accurate rendition of color as possible. It's not possible, however, to be certain that your computer won't show some variance. Where two prices are listed in the catalog, the higher represents what the weaver hopes to receive and the lower, the minimum she will accept. As has always been the case at ANE all the proceeds of every rug sale go entirely to the weaver. Prices are set by the weaver, and since there is no "middleman" they are typically very reasonable.


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