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The Kiva Gallery
"When we made the emergency into this world, there was life already
here. We were not the first ones to come to this world. The
plants were already here; the insects, the butterflies (povoolngyum,
as we call them in Hopi), the snakes, the reptiles, the animals, the
birds, the eagles -- were here. The clouds were here; the lightnings
were here; the stars were here. All of these are life forms for us."
The Emergence
The emergence of humanity is the stating point of Hopi mythology and
the Kiva is the point where people first emerge from darkness to light.
The circle motif represents what the Hopi call the sipapu; the womb or the
place of emergence. When we emerged from underworld, the shadow side
emerged with us. The figures in gray represent the unhealed side of
humanity, which must be purified in order to find the middle place. Pueblo Rebellion
The early Spanish church of San
Bernardo, built on top of the sacred Kiva at Awatovi, serves as the
backdrop to the Pueblo Rebellion of 1680. People of the pueblos, from as
far west as modern-day Taos, New Mexico, to the eastern most Pueblos of
the Hopi, rose up in arms against forced conversions and forced labor
imposed by the Spanish. Again, gray faces represent the shadow side in
this violent conflict. A Middle Place
The central mural represents the
rebirth of Hopi consciousness. Depicted in close proximity are images of
three women, the Katsina and Buddha. All of who, in the mind of the
artist, are seeking a common ground or pursuing a middle place of harmony.
This is the essence of the emergence myth. The Rational Side
Modern technology, industry and the
desire for wealth have, at times, adversely impacted traditional Hopi
ways. The results are scaring of sacred lands, and the emergence of an
array of social, economic, political and health related challenges, which
have taken a serious toll on the people of the Pueblos. Hope
The final segment of the mural represents the re-education of the brother and sister twins of Hopi Mythology. Below is the serpent symbolizing knowledge, while above, the computer motif and www. symbol signifies communication and adaptation in rapidly changing world. Central in this image is the apple representing both technology and a common mythology of knowledge and power. |
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