Loren Phillips
Buffalo Dancer
12" total
height
"One of the functions
of this Kachina is to bring the cold. He also serves the overall
function of prayers for good health, good crops, and a good harvest.
This kachina appears most frequently in the winter months, at
the beginning of the Kachina season.
"He has been known to
dance in the night Kachina dances in the kivas primarily, yet
he has also been known to appear in plaza dances with the mixed
Kachinas. He usually carries a lightning stick and a rattle with
stars painted on it. He is a contemporary kachina.
"Known as the Cold Weather
Man; he comes to help with/for a good hunt; at Oraibi, he wears
white leggings; at Shungopavi, he wears yellow leggings and requires
a shirt."
- J. Brent Ricks, et al., Kachinas:
Spirit Beings of the Hopi (2)
This awesome figure was carved
by one of the finest Hopi carvers of all time, Loren Phillips.
Loren was born in Moencopi, Arizona in 1942. Loren consistently
wins "Best of Show" awards, especially at the annual
Hopi Artists exhibition at the Museum of Northern Arizona in
the past. Because Loren participates in the ceremonial dances,
he knows every symbolic detail that is significant to each kachina
doll he carves.
Loren's tools for carving
are predominately pocket and hunting knives, from which he carves
the finer details of patterns, textures and decorative lines.
He is very particular about the sanding and finishing of his
dolls, especially the last steps of staining and painting. Loren
has developed his own method of applying stains to give the surface
a beautiful luster, through which the grain of the wood is still
visible. All of this is very evident when you look at this kachina.
Loren is very meticulous about
the creation of his dolls, and his hallmark is the motion and
action he puts into every doll. This kachina is truly an action
doll. The posture shows tremendous action, with arms reached
out to warn any who would misbehave!
Loren Phillips is featured
in every book about Hopi carvers, including "The Art of
the Hopi" by Jerry & Lois Jacka, "Kachina Dolls"
by Helga Tiewes, "Kachina Doll Carving" by Erik Bromberg
and "Hopi Kachina Dolls and their Carvers" by Theda
Bassman.
