For over one thousand years, the Pueblo Indian tribes have held a certain expertise in the art of making pottery. After learning the craft from the Indians of Mexico, the Pueblos honed their skills and have become well-known for their ability to create such beautiful clayware. One such tribe, the Hopis, incorporates their art into their daily lives.
ÃÂáÃÂçThe Hopi world revolves around artÃÂáÃÂè (Hopi Art). The Hopis believe that all objects in nature, such as rocks, clouds and trees, possessed a certain spirit, or life. Therefore, it was essential to them to preserve harmony in the world around them. It is even believed in their culture ÃÂáÃÂçthat if, when the time comes to [fire the pottery], someone utters more than a whisper, the spirit that inhabits the vase will break itÃÂáÃÂè (Hopi).
ÃÂáÃÂçThe ancient [Hopi] potters passed their skills on to succeeding generations, many of whom are Hopi potters todayÃÂáÃÂè (Hopi Pottery).
Clay is dug out of the earth by hand, and hand processed. Their pottery is created without the aid of a pottery wheel or molds, but is handmade using a method called ÃÂáÃÂÃÂ¥coil and scrapeÃÂáÃÂæ. Potters hand-painted the designs with yucca leaf brushes, and used natural materials from the environment to make the paint. For example, black paint, called ÃÂáÃÂÃÂ¥guacoÃÂáÃÂæ, was made by boiling Beeweed until it became dark and thick. This substance was then dried into small cakes, and wrapped for later use.
The pottery was fired in open firing areas ÃÂáÃÂçon the mesa using [coal] and cedar as a heat source,ÃÂáÃÂè which could reach over 1,300"ÃÂaF in temperature (Hopi Pottery)! Many modern Hopi potters prefer to use sheep dung as a heat source, because of its rapid and even heat.
The earliest Hopi pottery pieces, traced back to 500 BCE, were gray in color with crude, black decoration. However, as time passed, the Hopi tribe, along with its pottery, was influenced by many different events. ÃÂáÃÂçThe Great Drought,ÃÂáÃÂè 1276 through 1299, brought with it significant changes in the making of Hopi pottery. ÃÂáÃÂçOrange and yellow pottery came into existence as wood used for the firing technique was abandoned for the coal fuel found in abundance on [Hopi] mesasÃÂáÃÂè (Ugarte). Later, in 1628, another event occurred which altered their pottery making process. As Spanish priests began establishing missions around Hopi villages, domestic sheep were introduced to the Hopis, and the coal used in the firing process was replaced by sheep dung. What is called the ÃÂáÃÂÃÂ¥Modern Era of Hopi PotteryÃÂáÃÂæ began in the mid 1800s with the arrival of the Europeans. ÃÂáÃÂçTheir introduction of severe smallpox outbreaks to the Hopi Indian villages, in 1853 and 1854, forced a large number of Hopi families to migrate to Zuni Pueblo in western New Mexico.ÃÂáÃÂè The Hopis remained there for several years, adopting new techniques, shapes, and designs from the Zuni Indians, including ÃÂáÃÂçthe grayish-white crackled surface for their potteryÃÂáÃÂè (Ugarte).
Hopi potters of today create pottery using the same techniques as their ancestors that have been passed down through the generations. They ÃÂáÃÂçuse clay they gather themselves, usually from sacred tribal land.ÃÂáÃÂè Then, after the clay is sifted, cleaned, and soaked, potters use it to create their pieces using a traditional, hand-coiled method. ÃÂáÃÂçAfter the pot is shaped, a slip (a fine sand or clay mixture) is appliedÃÂáÃÂè (Pueblo Pottery). After the works are polished, painted, and fired, they are sold to consumers so that the beautiful Hopi art can be displayed and enjoyed in homes around the world.
Works Cited Hopi. 11 Mar. 2001. .
Hopi Art. 11 Mar. 2001. .
Hopi Pottery. 11 Mar. 2001. .
Pueblo Pottery. 11 Mar. 2001. .
Ugarte, Alicia. History of Hopi Indian Potters. 11 Mar. 2001. .