North America | Arizona
Katsina Doll
Arizona
Hisat Katsina – “One who no longer appears” Katsina doll
Hopi
Circa 1900
Carved wood (cottonwood), pigments
Height: 24 cm – 9 ½ in.
Provenance
Collection Daniel W Dietrich II (1941-2015), Chester Springs, USA
William Bunch Auctions, « The Estate of Daniel Dietrich », 21 September 2016, lot 8341
Collection Theodor Frohlich, Zurich, Switzerland
Hisat Katsina doll Green 24 cm / Galerie Flak
Price: on request
Katsina dolls (or Katsinam) represent spirits or gods from the pantheon of the Pueblo peoples in the American Southwest. Given to children, Katsina dolls constituted a pedagogical tool allowing them to familiarize themselves with the spiritual world and perpetuating knowledge of the founding myths on which their society was based.
Hopi religious practices and ceremonies are in a constant state of flux. As a result, certain spirits within the Katsina pantheon fade away, while new ritual figures occasionally emerge over time. When a Katsina spirit is no longer summoned during dance ceremonies, its memory gradually recedes.
This explains why identifying certain Katsinam can prove particularly arduous. These figures, who no longer take part in the dances, are known by the generic name Hisat Katsinam— "the Ones that No Longer Appear".
Regarding the provenance of this Katsina figure: Daniel Dietrich was a well-known philanthropist, art collector, and patron of the arts in Philadelphia. He was on the board of the Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA) at the University of Pennsylvania and before his passing in September of 2015 gave a gift of $10 million to ICA. In 2014, he was named an ICA Director Emeritus.
He described his collecting focus as “American with spiritual influences.” While he described ceasing avid collecting in the mid-1970s, he continued to acquire work until the end of his life.
Hopi religious practices and ceremonies are in a constant state of flux. As a result, certain spirits within the Katsina pantheon fade away, while new ritual figures occasionally emerge over time. When a Katsina spirit is no longer summoned during dance ceremonies, its memory gradually recedes.
This explains why identifying certain Katsinam can prove particularly arduous. These figures, who no longer take part in the dances, are known by the generic name Hisat Katsinam— "the Ones that No Longer Appear".
Regarding the provenance of this Katsina figure: Daniel Dietrich was a well-known philanthropist, art collector, and patron of the arts in Philadelphia. He was on the board of the Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA) at the University of Pennsylvania and before his passing in September of 2015 gave a gift of $10 million to ICA. In 2014, he was named an ICA Director Emeritus.
He described his collecting focus as “American with spiritual influences.” While he described ceasing avid collecting in the mid-1970s, he continued to acquire work until the end of his life.
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