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Press Releases from the Museum of Northern Arizona

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Press Release Contact: Michele Mountain, MNA Marketing Director 928-774-5213 x273

2011 Press Releases

December 30, 2011
2012 SEDONA LECTURE SERIES
2012’s Sedona Lecture Series celebrates Arizona’s centennial year with subjects that explore the early years of the twentieth century, when Arizona was a new state. This year's talks offer a glimpse into life during this period on the Colorado Plateau. The series is annually presented by the Sedona Muses and the Museum of Northern Arizona in Flagstaff. All four lectures start at 7 p.m. at the Sedona United Methodist Church in Sedona.

Southwestern Encounters: Mary-Russell Ferrell Colton and Her Contemporaries
Presented by Dr. Betsy Fahlman, ASU Professor of Art History
Monday, January 9, 7:00 p.m.
Mary-Russell Ferrell Colton’s story represents a powerful narrative within Arizona’s art history. Her work and career serves as a counterpoint to the other Arizona women artists who were her contemporaries and their chronicle exemplifies a rich Southwestern cultural history. These artists participated in a broad national conversation about the changing roles of women, including their participation in institution building, cultural preservation, exhibitions, education, social reform, and decorative arts.

Mary-Russell Ferrell Colton: Artist and Advocate in Early Arizona is an exhibit of her life and work at the Museum of Northern Arizona from June 17–October 28, 2012.

Historic Trading Posts of the Western Navajo Reservation
Presented by Jim Babbitt, Flagstaff Historian
Monday, February 13, 7:00 p.m.
The Atlantic & Pacific Railway opened up the vast Indian country of the Southwest to commerce and settlement. Small general merchandise stores, dubbed trading posts, sprang up across the Navajo, Hopi, and Apache reservations of northeastern Arizona and northwestern New Mexico. This talk will trace the development of trading posts on the western Navajo reservation, with an emphasis on the network of posts established and operated by the Babbitt family.

Everyday Scenes of Hopi Life
Presented by Dr. Robert Breunig, Director of the Museum of Northern Arizona
Monday, March 12, 7:00 p.m.
A pictorial overview of Hopi life during the time period Arizona was moving towards statehood. In contrast to the political wrangling in the urban areas, Hopi life revolved around their homes and fields. Dr. Breunig will discuss Hopi village life and farming in this heavily illustrated talk, featuring historic photographs by early photographers including Kate Cory, Emry Kopta, Adam Clark Vroman, and others. See Hopi architecture, creation of art, agriculture, and village life in the early part of the twentieth century on the Colorado Plateau.

An exhibit of photographs by Kate Cory on everyday scenes of Hopi life from the early part of the twentieth century is opening March 10–July 22, 2012 at the Museum of Northern Arizona.

Sedona: The Centennial Era and Beyond
Presented by Lisa Schnebly Heidinger, Granddaughter of Sedona Schnebly
Monday, April 9, 7:00 p.m.
One of the most spectacular places in Arizona, Sedona got a jump on the state by being founded a decade earlier. Even before that, people were discovering and adding to the community here. Author Lisa Schnebly Heidinger takes us on a stroll through Sedona’s growth, from earliest settlers to those contributing today.

Lisa Schnebly Heidinger’s Centennial gift to Arizona is her book Arizona: 100 Years Grand, which has been chosen as the OneBookAZ for 2012, an exciting statewide program that aims to bring communities together through literature.

All of the lectures are held at the Sedona United Methodist Church, 110 Indian Cliffs Road in Sedona. Proceeds from the Sedona Lecture Series benefit the Museum of Northern Arizona. Tickets for each lecture are $6 members/$7 nonmembers per lecture or $20 members/$25 nonmembers for the entire series. Tickets are available at the door or in advance from MNA at 928.774.5213, the Muses at 928.282.9781, Bashas’ in Sedona, or Weber’s IGA in the Village of Oak Creek.

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December 30, 2011
MNA RECRUITING FOR 2012 DOCENT TRAINING PROGRAM
A 37-Year Tradition of Learning • Community Building • Sharing
The Museum of Northern Arizona is recruiting for its 2012 Docent Training Program, seeking enthusiastic individuals who would like to learn and teach about the human and natural history of the Colorado Plateau.

Docents are volunteer educators who lead group tours and workshops throughout the year for school-age children, adults, and seniors.

The 2012 Docent Training Classes will meet on Thursdays from 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., January 12 through May 10, 2012. The $175 training classes consist of expert speakers on ecology, history, geology, paleontology, archaeology, ethnology, and fine arts of the Colorado Plateau. Training on effective interpretative techniques and educational content gives docents confidence in working with the public, informal education, leading gallery tours, and customer service.

The Docent Training Program is a rewarding way to give back to your community through teaching, while learning about the land and people of our region. Docent tours range from puppet shows for preschoolers to adult gallery tours on multiple topics. Docents also have opportunities to go out into the community for school outreach programs or slide show presentations for adult groups. Throughout the year there are many opportunities for docents to interact with the public and work toward their commitment of sixty hours of service per year.

Here is what four current MNA docents say:

“MNA’s Docent Program includes many social activities with the opportunity to meet people who have similar interests, and you will share your knowledge and enthusiasm with Museum visitors.” —Phyllis Wolfskill, Docent Class of 2006

“Docent training classes are taught by some of the finest scholars, researchers, and artists in northern Arizona. And as docents, we help visitors from throughout Arizona, across the U.S., and all over the world connect with this region and its people.” ―Susan Criner, Docent Class of 2006

“It’s very rewarding to work with the tour groups that come to the Museum. They all want to learn and they ask interesting questions about the climate, cultures, and the flora and fauna of the Colorado Plateau. The challenge of answering their questions is what I find most interesting about being a docent.” —Starr Shamek, Docent Class of 2008

“I enjoy participating in the Museum’s mission of instilling love and respect for the beauty and diversity of the Colorado Plateau. As docents we present highlights tours to public school children during the week and adults on the weekends. And we give workshops on prehistoric pottery, technology, foods, rock art, Grand Canyon geology, and even owl pellets.” ―Kim Vane, Docent Class of 2009

If you are interested in interviewing to become a Museum of Northern Arizona Docent, please contact Education Program Manager Kathy Farretta at kfarretta@mna.mus.az.us or 928.774.5213, ext. 206.

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November 22, 2011
SEARCHING FOR THE ESSENCE OF THE COLORADO PLATEAU
In the fall of 2010 the Museum of Northern Arizona welcomed three photographers as artists-in-residence. Rick Braveheart of Columbus, Ohio; Jim Knipe of Radford, Virginia; and Prescott Lewis of Ashland, Oregon came to northern Arizona to spend three weeks in search of subjects that conveyed to them the essence of the Colorado Plateau. MNA’s new exhibit Photographic Journeys: Three Visions is the story of their exploration of the human environment, open spaces, light, and atmosphere of this region. This exhibit will be open to the public on Saturday, December 3, 2011 through Sunday, January 16, 2012.

Fine Arts Curator Alan Petersen said, “One of the goals of MNA’s artist-in-residence program is to develop new insights and understandings of the Colorado Plateau region through the artistic process. The program offers artists the opportunity to pursue their work, while immersed in the inspiring landscape of northern Arizona and the Colorado Plateau. The three photographers stayed in a historic home on the Museum grounds and had access to studio facilities, and the Museum’s library and collections for research. However, most of their time was spent exploring northern Arizona and Flagstaff in search of subject matter.”

As a Native American, Rick Braveheart (Iroquois/Tuscarora) feels guided by the principles of walking gently upon the earth and honoring the land, its people, and creatures in order to help maintain harmony in nature. One of Braveheart’s goals as an artist is to share the beauty of the natural world and to inspire viewers to recognize the importance of doing their part in maintaining it for future generations. The works that make up his series “Walking with the Ancient Ones,” many of which will be in the exhibition, convey a sense of timelessness, a quality that Braveheart seeks to instill in his work. He writes, “With slow, mindful observation and reflection, the subtle details of the subject, its past, and relationship to its surroundings reveal themselves. The length of a shadow explains the time of day, a blurred leaf exposes a gentle breeze, and a white frost on a leaf conveys the chill of a late autumn morning.” Braveheart’s images achieve that goal through their poetic and almost dreamlike quality.

With respect to the works that he produced while in northern Arizona, Jim Knipe states, “I found an astounding beauty in the emptiness and vacuity of this space. I have come to appreciate this feeling of loneliness, this sense of isolation and separateness. It is the air, the openness, and the emptiness that I have attempted to articulate. If the images are successful, I trust that the viewer will feel the wind and smell the air that encapsulates you. And most of all, I hope the viewer can feel the resolute independence and uniqueness that this sparseness holds.” Knipe’s imagery depicts his interaction with often idiosyncratic elements found within the landscape. Many of his works reveal a wry sense of humor that emerges from the apparent dislocation of man-made forms found in an austere landscape.

Prescott Lewis creates complex, technically demanding, photographic montages assembled from dozens of negatives, color matched manually, and then assembled. He uses traditional film and photographic paper. Lewis recalled, “As a child I “was transfixed by the infinite rows of plowed fields and the towering electrical transmission lines that march across the landscape. To this day I am still struck and amazed by the human signature wherever I go and increasingly share contemporary concerns regarding our impact on the natural world.” Lewis’ photomontages are richly imagined and executed views of the interaction between human society and nature. The human elements in his images often seem incongruous, revealing our paradoxical relationship with the natural world.

Museum Director Robert Breunig added, “The work in Photographic Journeys by Braveheart, Knipe, and Lewis documents their deep exploration and makes a significant contribution to the artistic legacy of the region, and to our understanding of our home. Revealing nuances in these three fresh perspectives are often lost to those of us immersed in our daily lives. This exhibit invites us all to take another look at scenes and structures that we often accept without a second glance.”

There will be a gallery talk by Rick Braveheart and Prescott Lewis on December 2 at 2 p.m. at the Museum.

The Museum of Northern Arizona in Flagstaff sits at the base of the San Francisco Peaks. It is one of the great regional museums of our world. With a long and illustrious history, MNA evokes the very spirit of the Colorado Plateau, including the Grand Canyon and Four Corners regions.

The Museum is open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., except Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Day. More information is available at musnaz.org or 928.774.5213. The Museum Shops are also online at shops.musnaz.org.

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October 14, 2011
DISCOVERY 2011 EXHIBIT OPENS TODAY
DISCOVERY 2011 celebrates the creative and inquisitive young spirits who attended Discovery summer camps this summer at the Museum of Northern Arizona. The exhibit opens today through December 10, 2011.

Over eight weeks, 300 campers learned about the Colorado Plateau’s diverse ecosystems, world-famous geology, and rich cultural history. Most importantly, they developed deep connections with the region. These connections are clear in the artwork and science projects showcased in this exhibit, from this year’s campers.

“We are really proud of our campers’ accomplishments,” says Discovery Manager Caitlin Evans. “Each week, campers discover more about themselves and their surrounding environment. You can see our campers’ enthusiasm in the photographs and projects from this summer. I hope that they feel proud of their work and that their enthusiasm for exploring rubs off on our visitors.”

Now in its second year, the DISCOVERY 2011 exhibit includes student photography, recycled art, ceramic pieces, excerpts from field notebooks, photographs from field trips, archaeological excavations, and watercolor paintings.

A watercolor painting by camper Caitlin B. depicts Newberry, one of the classrooms in Discovery Village, the summer camp’s new location this year on the Museum’s campus.

The classroom buildings came from the Museum’s Research Center and were moved to their current location in 2009 and 2010. Now located next to the Colton Community Garden and in direct view of the San Francisco Peaks, these new classrooms will provide a unique learning environment for Discovery summer campers for years to come.

Museum Director Dr. Robert Breunig added, “The unique character of the buildings at Discovery Village provides a summer environment that we hope will be remembered by campers for the rest of their lives. Named after famous linguists, archaeologists, and researchers, each building is steeped in local and Museum history. We hope Discovery campers will be inspired to continue learning about the region, becoming tomorrow’s leading researchers and artists.”

The Discovery Program encourages students to collaboratively and individually contribute to the investigation and interpretation of the Colorado Plateau, their homeland.

The Museum of Northern Arizona is surrounded by tremendous geological, biological, and cultural resources in one of Earth’s most spectacular landscapes. With a long and illustrious history, MNA evokes the very spirit of the Colorado Plateau, inspiring a sense of love and responsibility for the beauty and diversity of the area.

The Museum is located three miles north of historic downtown Flagstaff, at the base of the San Francisco Peaks, on scenic Highway 180. It is open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., except Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Day. Admission is $7 adults, $6 seniors (65+), $5 students, and $4 children (7–17).

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October 11, 2011
A HOMETOWN WEEKEND WITH TED DANSON AND MARY STEENBURGEN
Join Ted Danson and Mary Steenburgen for “A Hometown Evening” at Flagstaff’s Orpheum Theater on Saturday, November 5 and a Sunday Brunch on November 6 at the Museum of Northern Arizona—two benefit events in support of MNA’s Edward B. Danson Chair of Anthropology Fund.

The evening event will feature a dramatic reading by Danson and Steenburgen, with Ted’s daughter Kate Danson and sister, Jan Danson Haury, of Tales of the Dansons, drawn from the dairies and writings of MNA’s second director, Edward “Ned” Danson and his wife Jessica Danson. Ted will also talk about his life growing up in Flagstaff and beyond. Film clips of Danson and Steenburgen acting together will be shown, and the Nuvatukya’ovi Sinom Hopi Dancers will perform. Capping off the evening, guests can mingle and dance to the live music of the Voluntary String Band.

Ticket options for the 7:30 p.m. evening event (doors open at 7:00 p.m.) are $22 for the lounge area and balcony seating, $35 for general floor seating, and $125 for a limited-availability VIP package, which includes seating in the first rows, admission to a 5:30 to 7:00 p.m. personal pre-show event with Ted and Mary, heavy hors d’oeuvres, and a silent auction of Danson and Steenburgen film memorabilia. Tickets for the VIP package must be purchased in advance at MNA’s Museum Shop, Animas Trading Company, Rainbow’s End, Bookmans, Stage Left Sub-Shop, orpheumflagstaff.com, or musnaz.org. (Ticket processing fees may vary between outlets).

At Sunday’s 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Brunch at the Museum, Edward B. Danson Chair of Anthropology Dr. Kelley Hays-Gilpin will give a short presentation about her research at MNA. Danson and Steenburgen will read selections from Tales of the Dansons, focusing on Ned and Jessica’s collecting trips for the Museum’s annual Hopi and Navajo festivals and their excursions with artist Jeffrey Lungé, brother-in-law to Jessica and Ned. There will be an exclusive live and silent auction of Danson family items and artwork, including signed original Lungé paintings of the Southwestern lands loved by the Dansons. An exhibit of Lungé’s art will be on display, accompanied by the release of an illustrated book, Jeffrey Lungé: Visions of the Southwest. Designed by Ted’s cousin Pam Lungé, the book includes essays by anthropologists Dennis Gilpin and Kelley Hays-Gilpin and an introduction by Katherin L. Chase, a previous curator of art at MNA. It was published by Copper Cliffs Press and will be available for purchase during the Brunch, at the MNA Bookstore and through local and regional outlets.

Available at both events will be a recently released biography Edward Bridge Danson—Steward of the New West by Ned Danson’s grandson Eric Penner Haury. Published by the Museum, it includes a foreword by Ted Danson and Jan Danson Haury, and an introduction by MNA Director Dr. Robert Breunig. An archaeologist, Dr. Ned Danson was a professor at the University of Arizona; assistant director under the Museum’s co-founder and first director, Harold S. Colton, and then director of MNA for 20 years from 1956 to 1975. The biography is available at MNA’s Bookstore for $50 hardback and $20 paperback; the paperback is also available at shops.musnaz.org and through Amazon.com.

Business sponsors of the event include, for Saturday night’s performances, KNAU and the Orpheum Theater, and for Sunday’s Brunch KNAU and KindVines|Sustainable Packaging Solutions. All proceeds of ticket and book purchases will go to the Edward B. Danson Endowed Chair of Anthropology Fund at the Museum of Northern Arizona, Inc. (MNA), an independent 501(c)3 nonprofit organization.

For more information about the Museum of Northern Arizona, visit musnaz.org or call 928.774.5213. For information about the Danson/Steenburgen events, contact development@mna.mus.az.us or call 928.774.5213, ext 270.

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September 29, 2011
CULTURAL EXPRESSION FROM THE HEART
When fall arrives in Flagstaff, it is accompanied by the smell of golden marigolds and sacred copal incense, stirring sounds of mariachis, tastes of tortillas and salsa, and colorful papel picado banners fluttering in the autumn breeze, all at the Museum of Northern Arizona’s 8th Annual Celebraciones de la Gente.

Saturday and Sunday, October 29 and 30, 2011 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., this Day of the Dead celebration returns to northern Arizona. Celebraciones de la Gente is produced in partnership with Nuestras Raices (Our Roots), a local grassroots organization of Flagstaff’s Hispanic pioneer families, dedicated to promoting the Mexican, Mexican American, and Hispanic cultures.

This is a joyous time of the year, when memories of ancestors are celebrated and the souls of the departed return to visit the living. The Museum’s historic courtyard is lined with ofrendas (altars), each one telling the story of a Flagstaff Hispanic pioneer family. Marigold flowers symbolize the brevity of life and lend a scented pathway to returning spirits. Candles are lit for each family member who has passed on. Calaveras (sugar skulls) sweeten the tongue and mock death with their whimsy. Papel picado banners herald the celebrations. And sweet pan de muerto (bread of the dead) honors the dead.

Museum Director Robert Breunig said, “Dia de los Muertos or Day of the Dead is an ancient holiday. It may have originated with the Olmecs, the first major Pre-Columbian civilization in the tropical lowlands of south-central Mexico. This celebration was continued by other cultures such as the Toltecs, Mayans, Zapotecs, and Aztecs.”

Heritage Program Manager Anne Doyle added, “It’s always exciting when our local Hispanic community comes back to the Museum. They bring with them a heartfelt way to express reverence for those who have gone before us, and teach us their custom of converting grief into music and dance and fellowship.”

Artists and Demonstrators
Hispanic arts will be represented by Anthony Esparza and his paintings, Gina Santi and her photography, Ralph Sena and his precious stone and silver jewelry, Emma Gardner and her paintings, Vicente Tellez and his retablos, and Araceli Gonazlez and her fused glass jewelry and accessories.

Heritage Insight Presentations—Conversación de la Comunidad
A professor at Arizona State University’s School of Transborder Studies and an award-winning filmmaker, Dr. Paul Espinosa will explore the dynamics of the U.S.-Mexico border through film. Using short clips from his award-winning documentary films, his presentation will provide a historical journey through the border region. Espinosa’s films have been screened at festivals around the world, and he has won eight Emmys and five CINE Golden Eagle awards. In 2010, he received the Outstanding Latino/a Cultural Award in Fine or Performing Arts from the American Association of Hispanics in Higher Education.

Retired history professor Dr. Pete Dimas will celebrate the history of the Mexican people in northern Arizona, by discussing the contributions of people who played a major role in the integration of Arizona into the United States economy through mining, ranching, the sheep industry, sawmills, and railroads.

Their stories are of survival, segregation, patriotism, and integration into the larger society. Dimas says true accounts of Latino contributions and accomplishments in Arizona are often left out of history books. He adds, “The history has been told by the ones who made the money, not by the ones who have made the money-making possible.”

Flagstaff’s own Southwest Eclectic Artists Association uses the contemporary art form of graffiti with spray paint. SEAA will again be in the Museum’s East Parking Lot, creating their annual mural with ancient and modern cultural images. The mural acts as an ofrenda or altar, honoring deceased family and friends of the artists. This year’s mural will honor Hispanic Veterans.

Music and Dance Performances
Tucson’s Mariachi Sol Azteca, a nine-member mariachi band, will provide a unique opportunity to learn about Mexico’s rich heritage of instruments and the songs they play, and hear traditional mariachi music. The roots of this musical style are folk-derived and rural, however, since the 1930s contemporary mariachi music has been an urban expression, associated with post-revolutionary Mexico City and widely considered to be the quintessential Mexican music.

Flagstaff 2011 Viola Arts Educator of the Year Sergio Padilla and Ballet Folklorico de Colores will perform three dance traditions from Mexico. Danza or indigenous dances are generally religious in nature and usually performed in community settings. Mestizo dances are also indigenous dances, reflecting European influences in either the steps, themes, instrumentation, or costuming. And Bailes Regionales or regional dances are performed by most ballet folklorico performing groups in Mexico and the U.S. They will perform dances from the Aztecs (Concheros), the Mexican states of Michoacan, Veracruz, Jalisco, and a new dances from Revolución Mexicana.

Los Compadres is a local community conjunto or small group, which has been playing familiar Mexican root music for the last 30 years in Flagstaff. Herman Ulibarri plays lead guitar, Frank Martinez plays trumpet, Manny Ulibarri plays guitar, and rhythm guitarist Jesse Rodriguez sings old favorite songs with bass guitarist Trini Logan.

Poco de Todo or “a little bit of everything” plays favorite Mexican oldies. Flagstaff locals Ruben and Robert Hernandez get together with cousin Manuel “Chuco” Jaramillo and friends Jesus “Chewy” Hernandez, Tony Armijo, and Anamarie Ortiz to form this talented group.

La Cantadora Alena Chavez from Flagstaff will be singing Tejano (or Texano, a term used to identify a Texan of Mexican heritage) songs.

Other Festival Activities
This year’s NAU Cline Library Special Collections and Archives exhibit is titled Walking through Time, about people and places in the early Southside Hispanic Community. Visitors will have a chance to participate in this exhibit, by helping to name unidentified individuals in photographs that were found in a trash bin of the historic Tourist Home, built in 1926, on South San Francisco Street.

Also this weekend, visitors can take part in a sugar skull making and decorating workshop, Lupe Anaya and her La Llorona storytelling, a papel picado workshop to make the colorful cut paper decorations, and face painting.

Nuestras Raices creates a community ofrenda each year and invites visitors to bring photos and mementos of their loved ones to contribute to this special place of memory and reverence. Nuestras Raices will also be a presentation about Dia de los Muertos traditions and the preparation of ofrendas.

A Piñata for Pepita puppet show by Museum docents will entertain youngsters of all ages. In the story, Pepita is visiting from Mexico on her birthday. Her abuela (grandmother) is not sure what present to give her. Will she give her a bag of wool? Seeds? Bones? Find out what the perfect gift is for Pepita.

At Creative Corner both days, creative people of all ages will enjoy making colorful Hispanic take-home paper flowers, Day of the Dead masks, and skeleton puppets.

Schedule of Performances and Activities
Saturday and Sunday, October 29 and 30 (times subject to change, see musnaz.org for updates)
Ballet Folklorico de Colores 9:30–11 a.m.
Dr. Paul Espinosa 11:30 a.m.–1 p.m.
Alena Chavez 11–11:30 a.m.
Poco de Todo 12–2 p.m. on Saturday only
Los Compadres 12–2 p.m. on Sunday only
Dr. Pete Dimas 1:15 p.m.–2:15 p.m.
Mariachi Sol Azteca 2:30–3:15 p.m. mariachi instrument workshop
3:30–4:30 p.m. mariachi performance
Closing Ceremony 4:30–5 p.m. on Sunday only

Sponsors of the 2011 Celebraciones de la Gente
This year’s festival is sponsored by the Arizona Commission on the Arts; National Endowment for the Arts; Arizona ArtShare; Arizona Humanities Council; City of Flagstaff/BBB Revenues; Flagstaff Cultural Partners; Coconino County Board of Supervisors; Salsa Brava; and the Fred Nackard Company.

MNA’s Heritage Program
At the base of the San Francisco Peaks—an integral part of the Colorado Plateau’s spiritual landscape—the Museum of Northern Arizona’s four annual festivals highlight the region’s cultures. These gatherings encourage communication and the exchange of ideas between visitors, educators, and artists.

The Museum is located three miles north of historic downtown Flagstaff, on Highway 180. It is open daily (except Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Day) from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is $7 adults, $6 seniors (65+), $5 students, and $4 children (7–17). For more information, go to musnaz.org or call 928.774-5213.

Become a member today, in time to attend the Celebraciones de la Gente Members’ Preview. Flagstaff’s Mariachi Diamante will perform, the courtyard ofrendas will be lit, a craft table will engage creative visitors, and a silent auction will be held, with proceeds to go to Nuestras Raices, all on Friday evening, August 6. For more information, go to musnaz.org or call 928.774-5213.

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September 28, 2011
2011 Semi-Annual Navajo Rug Auction
Saturday, November 12, 2011
Coconino Center for the Arts • Flagstaff, AZ
Public Preview 9 a.m.–1 p.m., Auction 2–5 p.m.

In collaboration with the Museum of Northern Arizona (MNA), Flagstaff Cultural Partners (FCP) will host the semi-annual Navajo Rug Auction on Saturday, November 12, 2011 at the Coconino Center for the Arts. The auction will feature over 200 vintage and contemporary Navajo weavings from artists, consigners, and the R. B. Burnham & Co. Trading Post. Rug styles being auctioned include Two Grey Hills, Ganado, Teec Nos Pos, Ye’ii, Pictorial, Wide Ruins, Storm, Sandpainting, and Eyedazzler.

There will be a public preview of all the weavings the morning of the auction from 9 a.m.–1 p.m. The live auction begins at 2 p.m. and is free to the public. A portion of the proceeds from this event will provide support for Flagstaff Cultural Partners and the Museum of Northern Arizona.

Consignments will be accepted for the auctions. Artists and other consigners are invited to bring their Navajo weavings to the Coconino Center for the Arts from Wednesday, November 9, through Friday, November 11, 2011. Experts will be on hand to view and select weavings.

The auction will be led by auctioneers from the R. B. Burnham & Co. Trading Post. Bruce Burnham and his family are well-known for their work in trading Native art of the Four Corners region for five generations. He has been a trader to the Navajo for over forty years and is also the auctioneer for the Hubbell Trading Post in Ganado, Arizona. He and his wife Virginia own and operate the Burnham Trading Post and Collector’s Gallery in Sanders, Arizona, in the Navajo new lands. The Burnham family is known for their encouragement of innovation and quality in Navajo textiles, and Bruce Burnham’s expertise in buying, selling, and trading has earned him the respect of area collectors and peers nationwide.

Specialists and experts in the field of Native art and Navajo weaving will be on-site to identify handspun, hand-carded, and vintage pieces, versus acrylic yarns, to ensure quality items and prices for the auction. Information on how to evaluate and buy Navajo rugs will also be available.

Navajo rugs are a great investment. Historically, the value of rugs has appreciated with time, and in recent years, Navajo rugs have outdistanced many other investment options for their return on investment. The breadth of artists, styles, and bidding opportunities has made rug auctions an affordable way to purchase and collect high quality rugs. Rugs sell from twenty to several thousand dollars. Even if you do not buy anything, it is a great cultural experience.

Navajo rug auctions are also an excellent opportunity to learn more about Native art. Before the auction, you can hold rugs in your hands and appreciate them up close. Detailed information and discussion about a specific piece, artist, and other aspects of the weavings will be available before and after the auction by experts in the field of Navajo weaving and culture. It is important to note that auctions allow weavers to obtain an immediate and higher return for their work.

Call (928) 779-2300 or visit culturalpartners.org or musnaz.org for more information.

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August 4, 2011
LARGEST GRAND CANYON EXCAVATION PROJECT IN 40 YEARS REVEALED
Between 2006 and 2009, the National Park Service (NPS) and the Museum of Northern Arizona (MNA) completed the largest excavation and research project in Grand Canyon National Park in nearly 40 years. Nine sites along the Colorado River at the Canyon bottom were investigated, revealing important stories about the lives of prehistoric peoples who made the Grand Canyon their home.

A new exhibit, Grand Archaeology: Excavation and Discovery along the Colorado River, opens Saturday, October 1, 2011 and runs through Sunday, August 5, 2012 at the Museum of Northern Arizona in Flagstaff. Sponsored by Grand Canyon National Park, Grand Canyon Association, and MNA, this exhibit was at the Historic Kolb Studio on the South Rim of Grand Canyon National Park earlier this year.

The exhibit includes 24 large prehistoric artifacts, including pots, metates, bowls, jars, and stone tools, plus numerous small projectile points, beads, pendants, gaming pieces, and other artifacts from the excavation sites. Also included are excavation equipment, a 16-minute video by Tom Bartels, 23 text panels, and 20 fine art photographic prints by Flagstaff adventure photographer Dawn Kish, who traveled with the archaeologists to the Canyon floor and along the Colorado River corridor. There is also a hands-on, science-based excavation experience for kids.

Of the thousands of archaeological sites known at Grand Canyon National Park, few have been excavated and many are at risk from the elements, visitor impact, and sediment depletion caused by the operation of Glen Canyon Dam.

“That makes these nine sites very important,” said Dr. Ted Neff, the Museum of Northern Arizona’s archaeological projects principal investigator. “This research project has greatly enhanced our understanding of past life in the Canyon. Working side by side, the National Park Service and the Museum were able to gain important knowledge.” The excavations were led by Neff and NPS Archaeologist Lisa Leap.

Grand Canyon National Park’s Deputy Chief of Science and Resource Management Jan Balsom adds, “Each site is unique and irreplaceable, and each site is a window into the past. These places are our heritage and it is up to us to preserve them for future generations. The NPS manages archaeological sites within the park. In the mid-1980s, our monitoring program documented that some sites were experiencing severe erosion. NPS excavates archaeological sites only when they cannot be preserved in place. These nine sites were excavated in order to learn what we could before they disappeared forever to further erosion.”

At seven sites, archaeologists found evidence of Ancestral Puebloans. They lived along the Colorado River between 800 and 1300 CE (Common Era). More people lived in the Grand Canyon during this time period than at any time before or since. They were farmers who grew corn, beans, squash, and cotton, and they hunted wild game and gathered native plants, using pottery vessels to store and cook their food. They built homes from local stone and mortar made from river clay.

The ancient sites that were excavated hold deep significance for present-day indigenous people as evidence of their ancestral past. The manner in which these sites are treated and interpreted is extremely important to today’s Native people and accordingly, this exhibit has numerous interpretations by descendant peoples.

One of the most exciting finds of this project was a kiva. Present-day Pueblo tribes use kivas as ceremonial rooms. This kiva and the tribal places of origin within the Canyon remain sacred to present–day native peoples, especially among Southwestern tribes. Both the Hopi and Zuni places of emergence lie within the Grand Canyon. Although we cannot know completely what meanings these sacred places held for people 1,000 years ago, we can deduce their importance by talking to present-day descendants.

The sites that were excavated by this project were reburied to protect them from further erosion. Using shovels, buckets, and wheelbarrows, archaeologists backfilled the sites with the dirt they had removed. They then shaped the area to its natural contours and planted native vegetation to aid in the stabilization of the site.

The Museum of Northern Arizona is one of the great regional museums of our world. Surrounded by tremendous geological, biological, and cultural resources in one of Earth’s most spectacular landscapes, with a long and illustrious history, MNA evokes the very spirit of the Colorado Plateau, including the Grand Canyon and Four Corners regions.

The Museum sits at the base of the San Francisco Peaks, the tallest mountain range in Arizona. It is open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., except Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Day, and is located three miles north of historic downtown Flagstaff on Highway 180, on the way to the Grand Canyon. Admission is $7 adults, $6 seniors (65+), $5 students, and $4 children (7–17).

For further information, call 928/774-5213 or go to musnaz.org. You can also find MNA on Facebook.com/musnaz or at http://twitter.com/MuseumofNAZ.

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August 4, 2011
WARRIORS: NAVAJO CODE TALKERS
Japanese photographer Kenji Kawano, born in Fukuoka in 1949, was not yet born when a group of modern-day Navajo warriors, known as the Code Talkers, defied Japanese intelligence during World War II. By communicating in their own language, the Navajo Code Talkers provided the U.S. Marines with an unbreakable code.

Now, more than a half century later, Kenji Kawano’s photographs capture the spirit of those Navajo Code Talkers, whose code was never broken. Warriors: Navajo Code Talkers, at the Museum of Northern Arizona from Saturday, August 6 as part of the Navajo Festival through Sunday, October 9, is an exhibit of 20 black and white photographs, each a handcrafted, gelatin-silver print on archival-quality paper.

As the Japanese continued to break every code the Americans devised, the Code Talkers provided the military with a perfect code: the Navajo language. Recruited from the Navajo Reservation, in the far reaches of Arizona and New Mexico, Navajo Marines were sent off to Camp Pendleton, California to attend both basic and Field Signal Battalion training. Their training included the special development of a new Navajo vocabulary, which encompassed military terms, the art of message transmission, wire laying, and pole climbing. Upon completing their training, the Code Talkers were sent to the Pacific to put their skills to the test. As the end of the war arrived, over 400 Navajo Code Talkers had been assigned across the entire Asian-Pacific Theater, representing every Marine Division. They took part in every Marine assault, from Guadalcanal in 1942 to Okinawa in 1945. U.S. Marine Major Howard Conner has stated, “Were it not for the Navajo, the Marines would never have taken Iwo Jima.”

Shortly after traveling to Arizona in 1974, Kawano met Carl Gorman in Window Rock, Arizona. As they got to know one another, Kawano learned of his assignment as a Code Talker during World War II. After attending his first Navajo Code Talkers Association meeting with Gorman’s invitation, Kawano began to befriend this influential group of men. In 1980, six years after venturing onto the reservation, Kawano became the official photographer of the Navajo Nation. In 1987, he began photographing the Navajo Code Talkers for his book, Warriors: Navajo Code Talkers, features an additional 50+ portraits and is available in the Museum’s Bookstore. Today, Kawano continues to capture the lives of the Navajo people.

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July 25, 2011
HOHOKAM ARCHAEOLOGY GOES GLOBAL
The Arizona Humanities Council (AHC) has awarded a $1,732 grant to the Arizona Archaeological Society (AAS) and the Museum of Northern Arizona (MNA) to bring the story of Hohokam archaeology to a global audience. The project will produce a YouTube video of the symposium "Hohokam Archaeology Yesterday and Today," held at MNA on March 5 as a key 2011 Archaeology Month event. The project's director is Dr. David R. Wilcox, senior research associate at MNA. Trailhead Video of Sedona will prepare the YouTube video, which features the research of Dr. Wilcox and four additional archaeologists: Dr. David R. Abbott, associate professor at ASU; Dr. David E. Doyel, archaeologist at the Barry M. Goldwater Range; Dr. Jerry B. Howard, curator of anthropology at the Arizona Museum of Natural History; and Henry Wallace, senior research archaeologist at Desert Archaeology, Inc.

"The Hohokam culture is one of five major prehistoric traditions of the Southwest," said Wilcox. "The symposium authors look both backward at previous contributions and forward to current work, and the value of both new and old to the creation of knowledge about these fascinating people." According to Ron Robinson, chair of the AAS, the Hohokam culture is one of the central areas of interest to the society's members, as well as to many people who are interested in southwestern history. "It was a real opportunity for us to be able to collaborate with the MNA to bring this information to the public of Arizona, as well as the wider audience," said Robinson.

The Arizona Archaeological Society is an independent, nonprofit organization of professional and avocational archaeologists who pursue the study of Arizona and southwestern archaeology; training in the disciplines of archaeology; and the education of members and the public through outreach programs and preservation activities. There are over 600 members in the 12 chapters of the AAS. More information about AAS, including membership information, is available at AzArchSoc.org.

The Museum of Northern Arizona, founded in 1928, is a research, collections, and education organization dedicated to the Colorado Plateau region. Located three miles north of historic downtown Flagstaff on Highway 180 and open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., MNA's Exhibit Building has nine exhibit galleries featuring Native cultures, artistic traditions, and natural sciences; an interpreted Rio de Flag Nature Trail; and a Museum Shop and Bookstore. More information about MNA, including membership information, is available at musnaz.org or by phone at 928.774.5213.

The Arizona Humanities Council, founded in 1973, is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and the Arizona affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities. AHC is not a state agency. AHC supports public programming in the humanities that promotes understanding of human thoughts, actions, creations, and values. AHC works with museums, libraries, and other cultural and educational organizations to bring humanities programs to residents throughout Arizona. All AHC-supported activities must involve the humanities disciplines: history, literature, philosophy, and other studies that examine the human condition. More information about AHC, including membership information, is available at azhumanities.org.

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July 19, 2011
DINÉ ARTS AND LIVING HISTORY AT NAVAJO FESTIVAL
In August of 1949, through the cooperation of traders on the western portion of the Navajo Reservation, 15 trading posts submitted ten of their best rugs to the Museum of Northern Arizona to compete for prizes. The Museum intended to interest both weavers and traders in keeping alive the old styles of weaving and improving the quality of yarns, dyes, and designs. This was the beginning of the Navajo Festival.

On Saturday, August 6 and Sunday, August 7, the 62nd Annual Navajo Festival of Arts and Culture will gather 75 artists from all corners of the Navajo Nation at the Museum, continuing the tradition of bringing artwork to market and sharing what makes their artwork distinctive. These two days of cultural immersion promise prominent musical performers, a traditional dance troupe, and Heritage Insight talks from the region’s experts, all giving visitors a Navajo experience.

“The festival’s theme of ‘A Walk in Beauty’ describes the weekend’s experience well,” says Museum Director Robert Breunig. “It’s a lovely way to spend a high country summer day among the Flagstaff pines, here at the base of the San Francisco Peaks, or in Navajo, Dook’o’oosłííd. This year’s entertainment under the big tent is some of the region’s best, and there will surely be a monsoon shower or two.”

Heritage Program Manager Anne Doyle says she is excited about the Navajo Festival’s Heritage Insight presentations this year. “These talks are meant to give visitors an intimate, in-depth understanding of our neighbors, the Diné people. Sponsored by Arizona Humanities Council, the talks are on subjects with cultural, historical, scientific, or artistic significance.”

Heritage Insights Talks
Zonnie Gorman is an expert in the field of Navajo Code Talkers of World War II. She talks about their history and the experiences of her father, Dr. Carl Gorman, who was one of the original Code Talkers. Zonnie Gorman has lectured on this subject throughout the U.S. at universities, colleges, and museums, including MNA and the Museum of the American Indian.

In a community with few jobs, no public utilities, and high drop-out rates, the STAR School has set out to be a model small community school delivering a superior education. It promotes sustainable living, self-reliance, alternative building methods, and energy sources such as solar power, and it is the first solar-powered charter school in the U.S. Award-winning educator and media arts instructor Rachel Tso will introduce five student films at the festival including RedBird Saves the Corn, a traditional Spider Woman story told through Lightbox Animation; Ta’che’e’, a short documentary on the sweatlodge ceremony; STAR Energy, which took Best of Fest at the Arizona Student Film Festival about using solar and wind power; Nitsidigo’i, about making kneel down bread; and Dook’o’oosłííd, about the role of the San Francisco Peaks in the lives of the student filmmakers.

Theresa Boone Schuler, a Diné educator from Flagstaff, will again lead the very popular ethnobotany walks along the Museum’s Rio de Flag Nature Trail. She will discuss the traditional Navajo uses of regional native plants. Schuler gained her knowledge from her father, a noted Diné herbalist who urged her to pass on the knowledge of traditional healing plants by teaching about plant identification and usage.

Navajo Linguist Larry King is a cultural bright light who walks visitors along a path of history and legend, highlighting the resilience of the Navajo Language and the way Navajos use humor to cope with hardship in their lives. He will also share humorous examples and fun stories about how new words and ideas are introduced into the Diné culture.

Weaver Kally Keams Lucero’s work is exhibited in more than 18 US museums and institutions and she participated in an indigenous weavers exchange, which took her to New Zealand and Japan. Lucero recently created a textile titled A Mother’s Embrace, which was purchased as a gift to MNA’s collections from a Collector’s Club member. It will be on display during the festival in the Navajo Textile Gallery and she will be talking about the process of the rug’s weaving and the story it represents. Dr. Robert Breunig will follow Lucero’s talk to discuss the role of collecting and how this rug came to be part of the Museum’s collections.

Under the Big Tent
Navajo entertainer and singer James Bilagody will emcee the big tent activities throughout the day. Bilagody has worked as a deejay at KGHR Navajo Radio in Tuba City and KRCL in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Handprints of Our People is a new CD by Native American Music Awards winner and Grammy-nominated flute player/guitarist/singer/songwriter Aaron White (Navajo/Ute) and his newest musical partner, flute player Anthony Wakeman (Pottawatomi/Lakota). Etched in the Native traditions of Mother Earth, listeners hear in their music the cascade of trickling canyon waters or swirling prairie winds summoning inner calm and balance from their acoustic guitar and cedar flute.

The Pollen Trail Dancers will perform storytelling dances meant to be performed in the warm season. Group leader Brent Chase accompanies the dance troupe with his humor, insight, and Navajo flute playing. The Sash Belt or Weaving Dance tells the story of Spider Woman’s influence in weaving, the Basket Dance depicts the important role of baskets in Navajo life, and the Bow and Arrow Dance honors the warriors of old who have protected the Diné way of life.

Singer Radmilla Cody, a former Miss Navajo Nation (1997/1998) and winner of the Best Female Artist at the 2002 Native American Music Awards, will sing Navajo songs from her CD Spirit of a Woman. Her stunning, emotionally-charged voice offers a memorable listening experience.

Additional Festival Activities
Artist demonstrators Lola Cody (weaver), Melissa Cody (weaver), TahNibaa Naat’aanii (weaver) Sally Black (basket maker), and Alice Cling (potter) will be on hand to show how they make their award-winning artwork. All five of these artists are recognized for their accomplishments in their art form.

The Museum’s weaving exhibit in the Navajo Textiles Gallery changes periodically throughout the year. It showcases examples of fine historic and contemporary weaving styles from MNA’s Navajo Textiles Collection of over 900 weavings. During the festival pictorial rugs and the Kally Keams Lucero’s rug will be on display.

Outside in the courtyard at Creative Corner, kids and creative adults will be able to make take-home crafts. This year, make feathered horse head pendants, jeweled bow guards, and animal track bookmarks.

In addition to the 75 booth artists, Museum volunteers will present consignment sales, allowing artists who produce only a few items a year a chance to sell their work. Hundreds of distinctive art pieces including paintings, weavings, jewelry, pottery and more will be on display and for sale in the consignment area.

About the Navajo Nation
The Navajo Nation is the largest tribe in the U.S., covering nearly 27,000 square miles in Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. With a population that has surpassed 250,000, this sovereign nation is focused on health care, economic development, and employment to benefit the Navajo people. Thousands of tourists each year are attracted to its natural wonder at Monument Valley, Canyon de Chelly, and Chaco Canyon. A resort casino, the Navajo Nation’s first in Arizona, is currently under construction in Twin Arrows, Arizona, 24 miles east of Flagstaff on Interstate 40. This $150 million project, slated to open July 1, 2012, will include a hotel, conference center, spa, and golf course.

62nd Annual Navajo Festival Sponsors
The 2011 Navajo Festival is sponsored by the Arizona Commission on the Arts, National Endowment for the Arts, Arizona Humanities Council, BBB Revenues from the City of Flagstaff and Flagstaff Cultural Partners, Coconino County Board of Supervisors, Fred Nackard Wholesale Beverage Company, and Thornager’s Catering.

About the Museum
Now celebrating its 83rd year, the Museum of Northern Arizona has a long and illustrious history, and evokes the very spirit of the Colorado Plateau. It serves as the gateway to understanding this region, with nine exhibit galleries revealing Native cultures, artistic traditions, and natural sciences. MNA’s four Heritage Program festivals highlight the region’s cultures and encourage communication and the exchange of ideas between visitors, educators, and artists. More information about MNA is at musnaz.org. Information is also available by phone at 928.774.5213.

The Museum is located three miles north of historic downtown Flagstaff on Highway 180, on the way to the Grand Canyon. The Navajo Festival is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. both days, during regular Museum hours. Festival and regular Museum admission is $7 adults, $6 seniors (65+), $5 students, $4 Native people, and $4 children (7–17). Become a member today in time to attend the Navajo Festival Members’ Preview, Arts Award Ceremony, and Silent Auction on the Friday evening before the festival. For more information, go to musnaz.org/support/membership.

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July 12, 2011
GRAND CANYON AUTHORS SYMPOSIUM AT MNA
Nine Grand Canyon authors, two dogs, and painter Bruce Aiken will explore the Canyon through words and images at Of Lines and Layers: A Grand Canyon Authors Symposium on Saturday, July 23, from noon to 4 p.m. at the Museum of Northern Arizona. Readings, book signings, talks, and panel discussions by nine authors will all be a part of the event. Included in the author lineup are (in alphabetical order): Stewart Aitchison, Todd Berger, Elias Butler, Tom Martin, Seth Muller, Richard Quartaroli, Wayne Ranney, Lori Rome, and Gwendolyn Waring.

Grand Canyon painter Bruce Aiken will give a gallery talk about his work in MNA’s newest exhibit Full Measure—The Artistic Legacy of Bruce Aiken. And meet Salt and Soap and learn about their canine Canyon adventures.

Event Schedule
Noon to 12:15 p.m. Welcome by MNA Education Program Manager Kathy Farretta

12:15 to 3 p.m. Meet Salt and Soap
Lori Rome brings the dogs from the famed Canyon children's book.

12:15 to 1 p.m. Grand Canyon Dreamers and Doers: Profiles from the Great Gorge
Eli Butler reads from Grand Obsession, Todd Berger reads from It Happened at Grand Canyon, and Richard Quartaroli shares readings from the Kolb Brothers.

1 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. An Intimate Affair
Join artist Bruce Aiken as he talks about the paintings in his Museum of Northern Arizona exhibit and his experiences as a Canyon artist.

1:30 p.m. to 2:15 p.m. Telling the Hard Story: Authors and Publishers on How to Share Grand Canyon
Wayne Ranney, Tom Martin, and Todd Berger take part in a panel discussion.

2:30 p.m. to 3 p.m. An Intimate Affair
Join artist Bruce Aiken as he talks about the paintings in his Museum of Northern Arizona exhibit and his experiences as a Canyon artist.

3 p.m. to 3:45 p.m. Rims, Rogues, and Trails: Readings from the Canyon World
Stewart Aitchison, Seth Muller, and Gwendolyn Waring take part in a panel discussion.

3:45 p.m. to 4 p.m. Closing remarks and additional book signings
Authors will sign books for the 15 minutes following each event and book signings will take place adjacent to the MNA Bookstore.

The symposium is open to the public and entrance is included with Museum admission. Museum members’ admission is free. The event is produced by MNA, with special thanks to the Grand Canyon Association.

The Museum of Northern Arizona is supported by BBB Revenues from the City of Flagstaff and Flagstaff Cultural Partners. The Museum sits at the base of the San Francisco Peaks, three miles north of historic downtown Flagstaff on Highway 180, and is open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. More information about the Museum is available at 928.774.5213 or musnaz.org.

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June 16, 2011
AN AUTHENTIC CULTURAL EXPERIENCE AT THE OLDEST HOPI SHOW IN THE WORLD
Once again, the Oldest Hopi Show in the World will bring artists, demonstrators, musicians, dancers, and cultural speakers to the Museum of Northern Arizona in Flagstaff. The 78th Annual Hopi Festival of Arts and Culture is on Saturday, July 2 and Sunday, July 3, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., at the base of the San Francisco Peaks and surrounded by the world’s largest ponderosa pine forest. An award-winning event, the Hopi Festival was given a Viola Award by the Flagstaff Cultural Partners this year.

The first Hopi Festival was held in 1930, on the July Fourth weekend. This long-standing gathering represents the partnership between the Hopi people and the Museum, and has always had as its mission the preservation of Hopi artistic traditions, as well as the creation of a marketplace for Hopi goods. Over the years the event has become a regional tradition for artists and collectors, alike, for visitors seeking an authentic cultural experience.

Heritage Program Manager Anne Doyle says, “An important part of the festival is the 30-plus awards that are given to artists who excel in their arts category. Sponsored by businesses and individuals, the awards are juried by art professionals from the region. At the festival, award ribbons are on display at the artists’ tables, making it easy to spot the finest collectable art pieces.”

In addition to the 75 booth artists, Museum staffers have made several trips to collect one-of-a-kind consigned works from individual artists across the Hopi Mesas. Collecting trips have always been an important part of the Hopi festivals, allowing artists who produce only a few items per year a chance to sell their work. Hundreds of distinctive art pieces including quilts, rattles, pottery, katsina dolls, paintings, and baskets will be on display and for sale in the consignment area.

Museum Director Robert Breunig said, “This year’s Heritage Insight presentations are about farming, land stewardship, language, migration—all important parts of today’s Hopi culture and the Hopi Tribe’s cultural preservation efforts. I hope visitors will enjoy learning about our neighbors, the Hopi, and the influence of this ancient people throughout this region.”

Heritage Insight Presentations
“Hopi Farming” by the Natwani Coalition
The Hopi Reservation is one of the most arid areas of the Southwest, however, amidst these harsh conditions, the Hopi people have thrived with terraced gardens of beans, onions, squash, and melons, along with peach orchards and vast fields of corn, a Hopi staple. On Saturday only, the Natwani Coalition, a project of the Hopi Foundation, will give a presentation on Hopi farming and agriculture. Included will be a history of traditional Hopi agriculture and land stewardship, the current state of the Hopi food system, and an overview of the Hopi for Youth Farming Curriculum Project. Natwani means “produce” or “vegetables,” but more significantly, it refers to the processes and rituals necessary for the rejuvenation of all life.

“Hopi Migration” by Scholar and Bluebird Clan Member Eric Polingyouma
Polingyouma’s talk will cover the Hopi migration north from Guatemala, the history of the Hopi Pueblo, and the historical gathering of clans on the Hopi Mesas, addressing who came to the Hopi Mesas first and who was accepted into Hopi over time.

“Beenhouwer Fine Art Collection” by MNA’s Acting Curator of Anthropology Lyle Balenquah
This is a collection of Native American fine art, predominantly from the Hopi, New Mexico Pueblos, Navajo, Tohono O’odham, and Apache Tribes. The collection is now owned by the Hopi Tribe and stored at MNA. Herb and Bernice Beenhouwer began collecting on their travels throughout the Southwest in 1966. Over three decades, the collection grew to over 850 items, including works by great Hopi artists such as Charles Loloma (jewelry), Thomas Polacca Nampeyo (pottery), Jouyce Saufkie (basketry), Henry Shelton (katsina dolls) are included. In 2009 the Hopi Tribe and MNA received funding from the Institute of Museum and Library Services to complete a comprehensive inventory and documentation of the entire collection. The results of this project will be discussed in this lecture.

Also giving talks will be artist and educator Ramson Lomatewama with “Hopi 101,” Mesa Media’s President and Founder Anita Poleahla on “Teaching Hopi Language from a Hopi Perspective,” and potters Dorothy and Emerson Ami giving a “Hopi Pottery Demonstration.”

Under the Big Tent
Hopi educator Jennifer Joseph will serve as emcee and cultural interpreter for the Heritage Insights Tent, sharing her knowledge, answering questions, and introducing performers. Located next to the Museum’s Exhibit Building and able to seat over 200 people, the Heritage Insights Tent will be the festival’s performance center all day long.

Nuvatukya’ovi means “the high up place with snow” and is the Hopi name for the San Francisco Peaks. The Nuvatukya’ovi Sinom Dance Group will perform their Buffalo Dance this year. This dance is usually performed during the winter to encourage snow, good hunting, abundance of wildlife, and survival. This dance is performed on the Hopi Mesas as entertainment and as a reminder that buffalo, antelope, and deer used to roam in northern Arizona. They will also perform the Palhikwmana or water maiden dance and the Koshari or clown dance to unite people and make them happy. All of the dance troup’s regalia—clothing, weaving, jewelry, and tabletas or headdresses—is designed and handmade by the dancers.

KUYI, 88.1FM Native American Public Radio from Hotvela ( Hotevilla) on the mesa tops of northeastern Arizona will be at the festival, talking to visitors, interviewing festival personalities, and adding their own fun to the event with their live broadcast.

Artists and Demonstrators
After enjoying entertainment under the big tent, take a taste of ages-old traditional Hopi foods—yeasted bread baked in an outside wood-fired bread oven, and piki, a ceremonial food made from blue corn.

Alice Dashee, a potter and educator, will talk to visitors about the role of corn in Hopi culture.

Ruby Chimerica and her daughter Anita Koruh will discuss the nuances of Hopi basket making. They gather and dye their own materials and will show how they use them to create plaques.

Potters Dorothy and Emerson Ami create pottery in the traditional Hopi way, from gathering the clay, to using all natural pigments to paint them and sheep dung to fire them.

All types of Hopi weaving are done by men. Louis Josytewa will demonstrate sash weaving. His long, colorful sashes are used as part of ceremonial clothing.

And glass blower Ramson Lomatewama will be demonstrating how he makes his glittering, glass spirit figures in front of the Museum with his portable glass blowing studio.

Creative Corner
Outside in the courtyard, kids and all other creative people will be able to make take-home crafts. This year, make and learn about the cultural significance of clay pinch pots, bookmarks with basket designs, corn maiden wall hangings, and rattles.

Hopi Dancers at Heritage Square
As a special celebration of this 78th year, the Nuvatukya’ovi Sinom Dance Group will perform at downtown Flagstaff’s Heritage Square for free on Saturday, June 25 in the afternoon. Additionally, they will dance in Flagstaff’s Fourth of July Parade.

2011 Hopi Festival Supporters
The 2011 Hopi Festival is sponsored by the Arizona Commission on the Arts, National Endowment for the Arts, Arizona Humanities Council, Flagstaff Cultural Partners, City of Flagstaff/BBB Revenues, Coconino County Board of Supervisors, Fred Nackard Wholesale Beverage Company, and Simply Delicious.

About the Hopi People
The Hopi village of Orayvi is considered the oldest continuously inhabited settlement in the United States, dating back more than a millennium. The Hopi have survived in their mesa homeland for centuries and although their culture is changing, their core values remain intact and central to their culture.

About the Museum of Northern Arizona
A modern Hopi kiva mural entitled Journey of the Human Spirit is permanently installed in MNA’s Kiva Gallery. The mural is inspired by a brilliant mural painting tradition that flourished in the Southwest between the fourteenth and seventeenth centuries. Artists Michael Kabotie and Delbridge Honanie depicted the emergence of the Hopi people; ancient migrations; the coming of the Spanish and Anglos; strip mining in Black Mesa; the abuse of fast food, drugs, and drink by Native people; and finally, the rebirth of Hopi beliefs and traditions from the Hopi point of view.

Now celebrating its 83rd year, the Museum of Northern Arizona has a long and illustrious history and evokes the very spirit of the Colorado Plateau. It serves as the gateway to understanding this region, with nine exhibit galleries revealing Native cultures, artistic traditions, and natural sciences. MNA’s four Heritage Program festivals highlight the region’s cultures and encourage communication and the exchange of ideas between visitors, educators, and artists. More information about MNA is at musnaz.org. Information is also available by phone at 928.774.5213.

The Museum of Northern Arizona is located three miles north of downtown Flagstaff on Highway 180, on the way to the Grand Canyon. The Hopi Festival is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. both days, during regular Museum hours. Festival and regular Museum admission is $7 adults, $6 seniors (65+), $5 students, $4 Native people, and $4 children (7–17). Become a member today in time to attend the Hopi Festival Members’ Preview, Arts Award Ceremony, and Silent Auction on the Friday evening before the festival. For more information, go to musnaz.org/support/membership or call 928/774-5213.

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June 3, 2011
MNA's Adventurous Summer Discovery Camps
Water splashing, baking soda and vinegar volcanoes bubbling, campfires crackling, junior archaeologists shoveling, and lots of laughter. These are some of the sounds heard during the last thirty-five years of the Museum of Northern Arizona’s Discovery Summer Camps.

Since it started in 1976, Discovery Summer Camps have been creative and active ways for children to spend the summer exploring the local landscapes and traditions of Flagstaff. Through field trips and hands-on learning in each of this summer’s 42 classes, students ages 4–18 will learn about the region’s diverse natural and cultural heritage. The camps are led by local artists, scientific researchers, and professional guides who emphasize having fun and spending time outside.

“While Discovery has grown quite large since it was founded (from 30 to 500 kids per summer) and has tightened its safety policies with new 12-passenger vans, we still provide a fun, outdoor learning environment for youths to discover more about themselves and their surroundings,” says Education Specialist and program coordinator Caitlin Evans. “Our camps encourage kids to become active in our community, and give them the ability to impact our natural and cultural resources in their futures.”

During each of Discovery’s Science Camps, students become fearless investigators of the region’s plants, insects, wildlife, and geology formations. Young students in Aqua Detectives dive into aquatic biology and hydrology as they study the unique environments of local lakes, rivers, and creeks. Campers in Naturalist-in-Training venture into the wild world of Flagstaff’s ponderosa pine forests, as they explore forest ecology, develop their own experiments, and investigate the impact of wildfires.

Discovery’s Art Camps provide the chance for young artists to learn techniques from professional artists, producing artworks that will be displayed in MNA’s 2011 Discovery exhibit. Campers in Tunes for the Trail will look for inspiration from the Wild West, as they explore songwriting, storytelling, and music of the Southwest with local musician Clair Stoeckley. An all-time favorite, Creative Clay has returned, in which students pinch, coil, and build clay pieces as they experiment with decorating and firing techniques.

In connection with Elden Pueblo, Discovery is offering three Archaeology Camps, People of the Earth, Adventures in Archaeology, and Field Archaeologist, in which students take part in real excavations and analyze artifacts during field trips to important archaeological sites. Additionally, Summer Among the Peaks for ages 9–13 will celebrate 14 years of overnight camping adventures led by Dr. Andy Yazzie. These multiday camps visit both national and hidden treasures, including Zion, Bryce, the red rocks and creek-filled canyons of the Mogollon Rim, and a white water rafting adventure down the San Juan River. They also engage in immersive cultural experiences at the Navajo and Hopi Nations, and participate in activities such as sheepherding, hiking, and camping on the Hopi Mesas.

The second annual Discovery exhibit will open at MNA on October 14 and will showcase artwork, scientific research, and collaborative projects created during the 2011 Discovery Summer Camps.

Discovery’s Junior Counselor program is entering its seventh year of providing valuable job experience to local teens. Volunteer Junior Counselors ages 13–18 are able to stay connected with MNA’s Discovery Program as they assist teachers with programs.

For reservations or information, contact the Discovery Office at 928.774-5213, ext. 241 or discovery@mna.mus.az.us. Scholarships are available and are awarded based on financial need and student interest. Class descriptions, scholarship information, and applications are available at musnaz.org/discovery.

The following sponsors support MNA’s Discovery 2011:
Anonymous Contributors
Flagstaff Community Foundation
Forest Highlands Foundation
McCoy Motors
Sam’s Club Foundation
Target

The Museum of Northern Arizona is surrounded by tremendous geological, biological, and cultural resources in one of Earth’s most spectacular landscapes. With a long and illustrious history, MNA evokes the very spirit of the Colorado Plateau, inspiring a sense of love and responsibility for the beauty and diversity of the area. Its education programs encourage students to collaboratively and individually contribute to the investigation and interpretation of their homeland. The Museum is located three miles north of historic downtown Flagstaff, at the base of the San Francisco Peaks.

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June 3, 2011
AN EXCEPTIONAL LIFE IN AN EXTRAORDINARY PLACE
Of the many artists who have focused their creative energy on depicting the Grand Canyon, none have developed as intimate of a relationship with this subject as Bruce Aiken. He immersed himself in the Canyon’s epic grandeur and his ability to translate that grandeur into paintings has become his legacy.

Full Measure—The Artistic Legacy of Bruce Aiken, opening June 19 through September 6 at the Museum of Northern Arizona in Flagstaff, will present Aiken’s Canyon paintings, along with works from trips to Mexico, France, and Italy; paintings from his artist-in-residency at NASA; and his most recent up close portraits of Grand Canyon rocks.

MNA Curator of Fine Art Alan Petersen stated, “This exhibit will provide the most comprehensive overview, yet, of Aiken’s life and work, including fifty oil paintings, drawings, and prints. Aiken’s passion for Earth’s landscapes and rocks will be seen in his most recent body of work, which examines in rich and detailed, microscopic views the rocks of the Canyon.”

"The Museum is very pleased to present Full Measure. Aiken has become an iconic artist of the Grand Canyon region. He follows in a grand tradition of such artists as Thomas Moran, Louis Akin, Gunnar Widforss, and others who have been inspired by the Grand Canyon, and who have given us a rich artistic legacy by interpreting its colors, landforms, clouds, and waters," said Museum Director Robert Breunig.

Bruce Aiken was born in New York City and was guided by his artist mother in his creative endeavors. He left home at 19 and headed for the West with $100, a 35mm camera, and a sketchbook. He enrolled at Phoenix College, where he took classes in geology, and also in figure drawing from artist Merrill Mahaffey, who would become a lifelong friend and mentor. It was at this time that he met his future wife, Mary Shields, and talked to her of his dream of leading “an exceptional life in an extraordinary place.”

Aiken’s first experience with the interior landscape of Grand Canyon came during a 1970 hike to Phantom Ranch. Captivated by the Canyon’s spell, Aiken spent two seasons working on a trail crew. Three years later he left his art studies behind and moved to the North Rim. Within a year he had landed a job as a water plant operator for the National Park Service’s pump house near Roaring Springs in Bright Angel Canyon, five miles down the North Kaibab Trail. This new position allowed him to explore the Canyon from the inside out in the 33 years that he and his family lived in its inner depths.

Retired for the last five years from his NPS position, Aiken now has a studio in downtown Flagstaff. “From the noisy din of Manhattan’s concrete canyons to the quiet, inner spaces of the Grand Canyon, Bruce Aiken has truly created ‘an exceptional life in an exceptional place’ for himself and his family. The result of that commitment has been a body of artwork, created over 40 years, that depicts the Canyon and the surrounding region with a veracity rarely seen in the history of the Colorado Plateau,” said Petersen. “Aiken’s complete immersion in his subject nurtured his growth and established his position as a master among Grand Canyon painters.”

“Aiken enthusiastically credits the early twentieth century Swedish-American watercolorist Gunnar Widforss as his greatest influence. Like Widforss, Aiken places great emphasis on knowledge of the subject and its constituent parts, conveyed through highly accurate drawing and depiction of light and shade,” Petersen added.

A preview of the Full Measure exhibit will be the featured activity at MNA’s 5th Annual Gala Weekend. The Gala Dinner on Saturday, June 18 and the Members’ Brunch on Sunday, June 19 will offer an opportunity to meet and speak with Bruce Aiken. Gala festivities include a silent auction cocktail hour, a catered dinner by Simply Delicious, and a spirited live auction with auctioneer Will Blume with works by Colorado Plateau artist, including a painting by Bruce Aiken. For tickets, visit musnaz.org/gala or call 928.774.5213, ext. 270.

Gala sponsors are Arizona Public Service Company; Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Arizona; Northern Trust, N.A.; The Barringer Crater Company; César Mazier Landscaping and Consulting Inc.; Flagstaff Medical Center Foundation; Kinney Construction Services; Hufford, Horstman, Mongini, Parnell and Tucker P.C.; McCoy Motors; Miller | Russell & Associates; National Bank of Arizona; Randy and Carol Schilling; and Russ Lyon | Sotheby’s International Realty.

The Museum of Northern Arizona presents a schedule of changing exhibits of fine art from the Colorado Plateau. The Museum sits at the base of the San Francisco Peaks, in one of Earth’s most spectacular landscapes. With a long and illustrious history, MNA evokes the very spirit of the Colorado Plateau. Three miles north of downtown Flagstaff on Highway 180, and on the way to the Grand Canyon, the Museum is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. Admission is $7 adults, $6 seniors (65+), $5 students, and $4 children.

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May 9, 2011
JOURNEY TO THE CENTER PLACE
Some of the finest Native fine art in the Southwest, as well as philosophy, beliefs, and values of the A:shiwi people will be explored at the Museum of Northern Arizona’s 21st Annual Zuni Festival of Arts and Culture on Saturday, May 28 and Sunday, May 29 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. New insightful talks, archival films, artists, dancers, and music will round out this year’s festival presentations, produced in partnership with the A:shiwi A:wan Museum and Heritage Center (AAMHC) in Zuni, New Mexico.

An opening ceremony with the Zuni Pueblo Band will take place on Saturday and Sunday mornings at 9 a.m. Zuni and MNA officials will raise the Zuni flag next to the U.S. and MNA flags, and they will remain together throughout the weekend.

“Each year this festival provides a forum for people of all backgrounds to learn, and perhaps take home, a piece of Zuni art and an enhanced understanding of their own world, as it has been shaped by the Zuni people,” said AAMHC Director Jim Enote. “And having the exhibit A:shiwi A:wan Ulohnanne—The Zuni World at MNA at the same time as the festival will give visitors an even larger experience of the Zunis.”

A:shiwi A:wan Ulohnanne—The Zuni World, also produced in partnership with the AAMHC and funded by a grant from the Christensen Fund, presents thirty map art paintings that Zuni artists have created to represent important places in their world. “This art holds something that transcends Western modernism and speaks to our own continuous search for the essence of Zuni,” added Enote.

Museum Director Robert Breunig said, “‘Journey to the Center Place,’ the theme of this year’s festival, talks about the ancient migration of the Zuni people from their place of origin in the Grand Canyon to Zuni Pueblo, and their cultural relationship to sacred sites throughout the Colorado Plateau. And it also talks about their effort as a people to live in a center place of Zuni beliefs and values. They are often considered among the most traditional of the Southwestern Pueblo people, having managed to preserve their core beliefs and identity, while integrating useful parts of the modern world.”

Heritage Insight Presentations
Four cultural programs will be given by the A:shiwi A:wan Museum and Heritage Center staff. These presentations are funded in part by the Arizona Humanities Council.

The A:shiwi Map Art Project
Discussion of the A:shiwi Map Art Project’s efforts, using artistic interpretation to connect to cultural landscapes and sacred places, will be led by AAMHC Director Jim Enote. A number of the 16 artists whose work is included in the A:shiwi A:wan Ulohnanne—The Zuni World exhibit will talk about their experiences visiting and interpreting sacred sites, and the power of indigenous mapping to create art that evokes memories and reactions.

The Zuni Place of Origin
Zuni artist, scholar, and cultural advisor Octavious Seowtewa will talk about the Zuni place of origin, Chimik’yana’kya dey’a or Ribbon Falls, on the north rim of the Grand Canyon. Seowtewa has traveled down the Colorado River fourteen times to Ribbon Falls and other sacred sites in the canyon. He will share his experiences of Grand Canyon and create an opportunity for visitors to contrast their own experiences in this discussion of identity and place.

The Zuni Salt Lake
Sixty miles south of Zuni Pueblo in New Mexico lies Salt Lake, home of the Zuni’s Salt Mother or Salt Woman, a deity the Zuni’s call Ma’l Oyattsik’i. When water evaporates in the summer, it leaves a layer of salt on this lake bottom, which is then available for harvesting. Sacred trails, like umbilical cords, tie the lake to the Zuni villages and to other sacred sites around the area. Zuni men follow these trails to gather salt, which embodies the flesh of Salt Mother, herself. Other pueblos, including the Hopi, Acoma, Apache, Navajo, and Laguna use the salt for their ceremonies. AAMHC Director Jim Enote will present this topic.

The Zuni Emergence and Migration Story
For the last three years, AAMHC Museum Educator Curtis Quam has presented this story to a packed room of visitors. Again this year, Quam will talk about his people’s emergence, their migration to Halona:wa, or present day Zuni, and the importance of language and cultural place-names. This history will give non-Zuni visitors a context for all that they will be learning about Zuni at the festival.

Archival Films and Photos from the A:shiwi A:wan Museum and Heritage Center
The AAMHC Photo and Motion Picture Archive contains approximately 4,500 still photos taken from the late 1800s to the present. The photographs include Smithsonian photos, photos donated by community members, photos of tribal programs, photos taken at Zuni schools, Indian Health Service photos, and Bureau of Indian Affairs project photos. A collection of 15 motion picture films were also made between 1923 to the present. A sampling of films and photos from the archive will be shown at the festival.

Traditional Dancers
The Nawetsa Family Dancers bring the pageantry of traditional Zuni social dancing, with colorful headdresses, beaded and fringed arm bands, traditional woven outfits, and turquoise jewelry adding to their performances of dances symbolizing the dreams, visions, and beliefs of the A:shiwi. The Eagle Dance honors the majestic bird for all it sacrifices to the Zuni people; feathers of the eagle are used in prayer. The White Buffalo Dance represents the rain clouds of summertime and prayers for moisture.

The Olla Pottery Maidens, decorated with turquoise jewelry and traditional woven outfits, dance while carefully balancing water pots on their heads. The pots are indented on the bottom for this purpose and in the past, these same pots were used for carrying food and water.

The Zuni Pueblo Band
The Zuni Pueblo Band is one of the few remaining American Indian community bands in the U.S. today. They proudly wear the traditional Pueblo style of dress, with a red woven sash belt around the waist, a handmade concho belt, exquisite Zuni jewelry, and red leather moccasins. The men wear bowguards on their arms and a traditional white headscarf across their foreheads. The women tie their hair in the back with a small red sash. Membership in the band is open to all Zunis, regardless of age or experience. In recent years, the band has had members from eight to 80 years old and it is common to see three or four generations of families participating in the band at any given time. The Zuni Pueblo Band plays marches by John Phillip Sousa, K. L. King, Roland Seitz, and other well-known composers for parades and concerts.

Zuni Artists and Demonstrators
Zuni artists are known for some of the most sought after Native works of art. Through their distinctive sense of color and patterns, intricately crafted designs, and traditional symbols, they represent an ancient people. Artist demonstrators will create artwork and talk with visitors about materials and designs they use.
Aric Chopito—weaving demonstrator
Rayland and Patty Edaakie—silver inlay jewelry demonstrators
Lorandina Sheshe—traditional fetish carving demonstrator
Todd Westika—contemporary fetish carving demonstrator
James Cheama—fetish carving and inlay jewelry
Colin Coonsis—inlay jewelry
Kenneth Epaloose—pottery
Tony and Ola Eriacho—inlay jewelry
Rolanda Haloo—jewelry
Yolanda Laate—jewelry
Matthew Neha—fine art
Claudia Peina—fetish carving
Octavious and Irma Seowtewa—needlepoint jewelry
Margia Simplicio—folk art
Noreen Simplicio—pottery
Mike Yatsayte—fetish carving

2011 Heritage Program Supporters
Zuni Festival’s Heritage Insight Presentations were made possible through a grant from the Arizona Humanities Council. Additional supporters of this year’s Heritage Program festivals included the Arizona Commission on the Arts, the National Endowment for the Arts, Flagstaff Cultural Partners, the City of Flagstaff / BBB Revenues, and Coconino County. Main Street Catering, Salsa Brava, Simply Delicious, and Thornager’s Catering support the festival’s members’ previews.

About the Zuni People
The spiritual and ancestral landscape of the A:shiwi includes the San Francisco Peaks or Sunha:kwin K'yaba:chu Yalanne in the west, Mesa Verde in the north, Sandia Mountains in the east, the Salt and Gila River Basins to the south, and of course, the Grand Canyon, the Zuni place of origin.

Zunis believe they emerged from Mother Earth within the Grand Canyon and migrated across the Colorado Plateau to Halona Idiwana’a or the Middle Place of the World, home of the Zuni today. Their broad, scenic valley with red mesas and an expansive blue sky is about 150 miles west of Albuquerque at an historic crossroads of travel and trade in northwestern New Mexico. Zuni Pueblo is the largest of nineteen New Mexican pueblos, with eleven thousand members spread out over 600 square miles. The fact that the A:shiwi language bears no similarity to any other known language is indicative of their isolation. Eighty percent of Zuni families are involved in making fine arts, home-based work that makes it possible for Zunis to remain in their community.

About the A:shiwi A:wan Museum and Heritage Center
Established by a small group of Zuni tribal members in 1992, the A:shiwi A:wan Museum and Heritage Center is dedicated to serving the Zuni community with programs and exhibits that reflect on their past, and are relevant to their present and future. This museum emphasizes A:shiwi ways of knowing, while also exploring modern and mainstream concepts of knowledge. AAMHC teaches Zuni youth traditional life skills and how to apply them to modern circumstances. Old films, photo archives, and a collection of digitized oral history interviews are popular with many Zunis. Art is a fundamental part of the culture. With collections of contemporary and prehistoric Zuni art, and Zuni school art exhibitions, AAMHC provides a venue and forum for local artists to study and reflect on the possibilities of art in their community. Visit ashiwi-museum.org for more information or call 505.782.4403.

About the Museum of Northern Arizona
Now celebrating its 83rd year, the Museum of Northern Arizona has a long and illustrious history and evokes the very spirit of the Colorado Plateau. It serves as the gateway to understanding this region, with nine exhibit galleries revealing Native cultures, artistic traditions, and natural sciences. MNA’s four Heritage Program festivals highlight the region’s cultures and encourage communication and the exchange of ideas between visitors, educators, and artists. More information about MNA is at musnaz.org.
Information is also available by phone at 928.774.5213.

The Museum of Northern Arizona is located three miles north of downtown Flagstaff on Highway 180, on the way to the Grand Canyon. The Zuni Festival is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. both days, during regular Museum hours. Festival and regular Museum admission is $7 adults, $6 seniors (65+), $5 students, $4 Native people, and $4 children (7–17).

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March 22, 2011
2011 Heritage Program
At MNA’s four weekend-long annual festivals, explore the rich heritage of northern Arizona and the Four Corners region. Meet Native artists, performers, ethnobotanists, and cultural interpreters. Enjoy stories, dances, and songs, and attend Heritage Insight programs to learn more about the Colorado Plateau.

21st Annual Zuni Festival of Arts and Culture • Saturday and Sunday, May 28 and 29
Journey to the Center Place
Members’ Preview and Awards Presentation • Friday, May 27
The A:shiwi or Zuni people, share Zuni language, lifeways, traditional music, and dances. Artists, performers and educators travel from Zuni, New Mexico, an integral part of the cultural landscape of the Colorado Plateau, to share their art and culture. Enjoy the Nawetsa Family Dancers who perform traditional Zuni dances, and music from the Zuni Pueblo Band. See MNA’s newest exhibit A:shiwi A:wan Ulohnanne—The Zuni World, and learn about the importance of art and cultural place-names in the perpetuation of traditional identity. Meet and buy directly from Zuni artists. This event is created in partnership with the A:shiwi A:wan Museum and Heritage Center in Zuni, New Mexico.

78th Annual Hopi Festival of Arts and Culture • Saturday and Sunday, July 2 and 3
The Oldest Hopi Show in the World
Members’ Preview and Awards Presentation • Friday, July 1
A Fourth of July tradition since the 1930s, award-winning Hopi artists from the twelve Hopi villages bring the mesas to Flagstaff. The unique work of carvers, painters, jewelers, potters, quilters, and basket and textile weavers fill the more than 65 artists’ booths. Enjoy cultural presentations, storytelling, music, and dances that fill the Museum grounds during the Fourth of July weekend. Taste Hopi bread and piki baked outside in ovens. Watch Hopi pottery being shaped, painted, and traditionally fired. Walk the Museum’s Rio de Flag Nature Trail with a Hopi medicine woman. Learn about Hopi clans and clan migration, and how the tribe is working to preserve language and agricultural traditions.

62nd Annual Navajo Festival of Arts and Culture • Saturday and Sunday, August 6 and 7
A Walk in Beauty
Members’ Preview and Awards Presentation • Friday, August 5
Weavers and potters work side by side with jewelers and filmmakers during this colorful and exciting summer festival. More than 100 of the finest Diné artists display and demonstrate their innovative expressions of traditional art forms. Meet award winning painters and renowned weavers. Enjoy hoop and social dances, and traditional and modern Native music with the Pollen Trail Dancers and Blackfire. Learn from cultural experts about customs and practices families are using to keep traditions strong. Explore the tribe’s intricate language with a Navajo linguist, and come to understand many ancient legends and traditions. Hike with a Navajo ethnobotanist and learn the Diné uses of local plant life.

8th Annual Celebraciones de la Gente • Saturday and Sunday, October 29 and 30
A Lively Celebration of the Day of the Dead
Members Preview and Lighting of Altars • Friday, October 28
The Museum comes to life for Dia de los Muertos or Day of the Dead, an ancient Mesoamerican holiday held throughout Mexico, Latin America, and the Southwest. More than a dozen Flagstaff families create ofrendas (altars) to display in the Museum’s courtyard. Learn about Day of the Dead traditions and the role of Hispanics in northern Arizona’s history. Enjoy mariachi music, arts, and storytelling. Learn about migration and the blending of cultural traditions. A celebration of all people of Latino and Hispanic origin, this festival is a colorful and vibrant expression of community. It is created in partnership with Nuestras Raices, an organization of Flagstaff Hispanic pioneers.

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February 19, 2011
ARCHAEOLOGY DAY AT MNA FOCUSES ON PREHISTORIC PEOPLE OF THE COLORADO PLATEAU
Turn back the clock and enter the world of prehistoric people on the Colorado Plateau. On Saturday, March 5 from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., the Museum of Northern Arizona will celebrate Archaeology Day. This annual event focuses on ancient people from this region and offers an opportunity for budding archaeologists of all ages to get close to professionals in that field.

Archaeology Day features kids’ activities, hands-on ancient artifact analysis, atlatl throwing, and a symposium titled “Hohokam Archaeology Yesterday and Today.”

From 10 a.m.–2 p.m., visitors will enjoy exploring four docent-led kids’ activities: a hunter’s kit, making split twig figurines, mano and metate corn grinding and learning what prehistoric people ate, and rock art. There will also be a scavenger hunt throughout the Museum’s Exhibit Building.

MNA Docent Jerry Bacon will present atlatl throwing. Bacon is rated fourth in Arizona atlatl competitions and will share his extensive knowledge of this prehistoric tool.

Also from 10 a.m.–2 p.m., the Northern Arizona Archaeological Society /Elden Pueblo Project will conduct an interactive introduction to prehistoric artifact analysis from excavated ceramics and ground stone (manos, hammerstones, axes, and mauls), a post-excavation process that provides archaeologists valuable data for analysis at Elden Pueblo. Visitors will have the opportunity to learn identification of pottery types and stone tools, and be able to see some of the latest artifacts found at the Elden Pueblo excavation site. The Elden Pueblo Project’s work helps us to understand the connection between local cultures of the past, their distinctive styles, and the role natural resources played in the development of pottery and tools.

From 2–4:30 p.m., MNA’s Senior Archaeologist David Wilcox will host “Hohokam Archaeology Yesterday and Today,” a symposium to discuss the history of Hohokam archaeology and provide modern syntheses of current work in Hohokam irrigation, ceramics, settlement systems, and religious ideology. The symposium presenters will be David E. Doyel (chair), David R. Wilcox, Jerry B. Howard, David R. Abbott, and Henry Wallace. An opportunity for audience discussion will follow the presentations.

David E. Doyel, US Air Force, Barry M. Goldwater Range East
Looking Back and Looking Ahead: Hohokam Archaeology since Snaketown
Emil Haury's masterful volume "The Hohokam: Desert Farmers and Craftsmen.
Excavations at Snaketown, 1964–1965" (University of Arizona Press) was a capstone to his long career in the archaeology of the Sonoran Desert. His ambitious program at Snaketown exposed both the strengths and weaknesses of the "lone scholar" research tradition in American archaeology. His research addressed the origins of Hohokam culture, the absolute chronology and the internal divisions within the cultural sequence, the development of material culture and architecture, subsistence (including canal irrigation), and relationships with surrounding cultures. This talk will touch on these topics and will identify some contemporary issues such as social organization, settlement pattern, site structure, and exchange that have developed since Haury's last excavation at Snaketown almost 50 years ago.

David R. Wilcox, Museum of Northern Arizona
Applications of Yesterdays Data to Today's Problems in Hohokam Archaeology
Since Eusebio Kino first described the Casa Grande Ruin in the 1690s, scientific data about what a Southwest Archaeology Conference held at Gila Pueblo in 1931 agreed to call "Hohokam Archaeology" has been accumulating. Dr. Wilcox will talk about findings made at four sites, two in the Middle Gila Valley (Casa Grande and Snaketown) and two in the Lower Salt Valley (Pueblo Grande and Los Hornos), with an eye to how data collected from them are relevant to the considerations of contemporary problems in Hohokam archaeology.

Jerry B. Howard, Arizona Museum of Natural History
Reflections of Water: Evaluating Advances in the Study of Hohokam Irrigation Systems
Building on pioneer mapping studies begun in the late nineteenth century, a new series of scientific investigations of Hohokam irrigation began in the 1980s based on excavations and innovative analytical techniques that have transformed current knowledge. The suite of analytical techniques permits both the reconstruction of characteristics of individual canals and calculation of the amount of water they could carry, the acreage that they could irrigate, and the population they could support. Combined with new dating techniques, these findings allow us to examine how irrigation capacity changed through time and provide a measure of both agricultural success and population growth. This talk will explore past successes and future research directions of this approach.

David R. Abbott, School of Human Evolution and Social Change, Arizona State University
Advances in Hohokam Ceramic Research: Studying the Meaning of Pottery Production and Distribution for Reconstructing the Hohokam Economy
Over the last 15 years, the composition of tens of thousands of Hohokam pottery pieces from the Phoenix basin have been examined to determine their production sources and monitor the organization of ceramic manufacture and distribution. These analyses have revealed an unusually sophisticated division of labor, which, in turn, implies a vibrant ancient economy organized at a regional scale during Preclassic times, but which suffered decline during the subsequent Classic period.

Henry D. Wallace, Desert Archaeology, Inc.
The Ballcourt Society and the Ritual Creation of Hohokam Culture
As a result of refined ceramic dating, we now know that a host of major changes in styles of decoration, and the appearance of new ceremonies, ritual architecture, and ballcourts with raised embankments, show up in what was likely an ethnically diverse range of populations all across southern and central Arizona within the span of a generation around A.D. 800. This talk will discuss how this came about through a revitalization movement and the creation of sodalities that bound the region together with a common ideology and ritual framework, fostering economic interrelationships and population growth.

The Museum of Northern Arizona is one of the great regional museums of our world, surrounded by tremendous geological, biological, and cultural resources in one of Earth’s most spectacular landscapes. With a long and illustrious 83-year history, MNA evokes the very spirit of the Colorado Plateau, inspiring a sense of love and responsibility for the beauty and diversity of the area.

MNA is located at the base of the San Francisco Peaks, just three miles north of historic downtown Flagstaff on Highway 180, on the way to the Grand Canyon. Admission is $7 adults, $6 seniors (65+), $5 students, and $4 children (7–17). Additional information about the Museum is available at 928/774-5213 or at musnaz.org.

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February 17, 2011
MUSEUM OF NORTHERN ARIZONA LAUNCHES DISCOVERY 2011
The Museum of Northern Arizona’s Discovery Program has offered hands-on classes that immerse children in their environment for 35 years. This year starts off with a Discovery spring break class tied to a major exhibit currently at MNA, a new kids’ space for the Museum’s younger visitors and their families, and backpacks for meaningful exploration of the Colorado Plateau’s Native cultures, fine arts, natural sciences, and ecology in MNA’s galleries.

“These new Discovery offerings for kids encourage their inherent inclination to explore, to discover, and to ask questions,” stated MNA’s Education Specialist Caitlin Evans. “As we draw out kids’ natural curiosity and create a thirst for knowledge, we’re also teaching them to become lifelong learners, who investigate and interpret their surroundings.”

Clay Magic, Discovery’s 2011 Spring Break Class
Inspired by MNA’s current exhibit Jake Brookins—dreams : realizations : contemplations : fantasies, Clay Magic for ages 5–13 will encourage students to discover their inner artist and the playful side of creativity from Monday, March 14 through Friday, March 18, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day. Led by local ceramic artist Chandra Robinson, this class will focus on ceramic techniques, painting, and sketching.

MNA Director Dr. Robert Breunig added, “We’re excited to offer a spring break program inspired by the late Jake Brookins’ exhibit. His explorations of ancient communities and imaginary realms lend themselves well to a youth art class. We want students to have fun with art and to invent new ways of interpreting the world around them.”

This week of creativity will conclude with a student art show for friends and family, and a gallery tour of the Jake Brookins exhibit.

Cost for the five-day class is $215 for members and $235 for nonmembers. To register, call 928/774-5213, ext. 222 or e-mail discovery@mna.mus.az.us. Sponsors for Clay Magic are Albertsons Community Partners, Flagstaff Community Foundation, Forest Highlands Foundation, McCoy Motors, Sam’s Club, and Target.

New Discovery Room at the Museum
This gallery is a place for younger visitors and their families to explore the Colorado Plateau and be able to touch everything. Its current theme explores dinosaur life and their evolution through games, puzzles, books, a puppet show, and images to color.

Discovery Backpacks
Starting March 1, children 4–8, older siblings, and families will share a new hands-on, kid-friendly way to explore the Museum’s nine exhibit galleries. Backpackers will be encouraged to look closely at objects with magnifying glasses, share their own knowledge from travels throughout the region, play games, solve puzzles, learn about new people and places, and complete activities together as a group. Discovery Backpacks will be free for paid visitors to check out from MNA’s Front Desk.

Discovery Summer Camps
For youths of all ages (4–17), Discovery day and overnight camps are a summer’s worth of wonder, taught by experienced educators versed in the region’s traditions. The 2011 Discovery Summer Camps will run from June 20 through August 12 and the schedule will be posted by March 15 at musnaz.org.

About MNA
The Museum of Northern Arizona is surrounded by tremendous geological, biological, and cultural resources in one of Earth’s most spectacular landscapes. With a long and illustrious 83-year history, MNA evokes the very spirit of the Colorado Plateau, inspiring a sense of love and responsibility for the beauty and diversity of the area. Its education programs encourage students to individually and collaboratively investigate and interpret their homeland.

The Museum is located three miles north of historic downtown Flagstaff, at the base of the San Francisco Peaks, on scenic Highway 180, on the way to the Grand Canyon. Admission is $7 adults, $6 seniors (65+), $5 students, and $4 children (7–17).

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February 16, 2011
ZUNI MAP ART—ILLUSTRATING CULTURAL MEMORY
There is an indigenous mapping movement growing around the world reinforcing indigenous knowledge of ancestral lands and describing the world as a cultural landscape. The Museum of Northern Arizona in Flagstaff is set to open a new exhibit, A:shiwi A:wan Ulohnanne – The Zuni World, that highlights the Zuni peoples’ unique approach to mapping with art. Thirty new Zuni map art paintings and accompanying videography and acoustic productions are part of the exhibit, produced in partnership with the A:shiwi A:wan Museum and Heritage Center (AAMHC) in Zuni, New Mexico. The exhibit will be open from February 26 through October 30, 2011.

The Zunis have always had maps, in songs and prayers, painted on ceramics, and etched in stone. These maps refer to the place of their origin and places they visited. But over the past 500 years, Zuni names of places and their meanings have been all but eliminated from mainstream use. In their place are a new set of maps, with a new set of names that reflect other values and ways of seeing the world that has been the Zunis’ home for generations.

“In the face of modernity and globalization, Zunis along with other indigenous peoples are struggling to maintain a relationship with cultural landscapes throughout our aboriginal territories,” stated Jim Enote, director of the A:shiwi A:wan Museum and Heritage Center and curator of the exhibit. “We believe map art can create a new pathway for envisioning and respecting sacred natural features. Being mindful and taking care of these places is important for Zuni’s cultural survival, as well as the survival of all dependant life in the area.”

MNA Director Dr. Robert Breunig added, “The majority of people living on the Colorado Plateau have little knowledge of why the Zunis care so much about this entire region. During the ancient migration of the Zuni people from the Grand Canyon to their present home at Zuni Pueblo in western New Mexico, they left physical and spiritual marks upon the landscape, which evoke memories, connections, and ideas.”

Many modern maps are direct denials of Zuni history and their presence on the land. Consequently, those maps have led to the creation of the exhibit’s map paintings by prominent Zuni artists Alex Seowtewa, Duane Dishta, Edward Wemytewa, Geddy Epaloose, Mallery Quetawki, and Ernalinda Pooacha-Eli, among others. The paintings are distinctly Zuni and consistent with Zuni styles of abstraction of nature. “These map art paintings speak to the artists’ continuous search for the essence of Zuni and serve as learning tools for our community,” Enote said. “The A:shiwi A:wan Museum’s map art collection is helping to accelerate a movement in indigenous map making and a movement to reverse distortions of our history.”

The Zuni map art program is one of the A:shiwi A:wan Museum and Heritage Center’s most ambitious and far-reaching undertakings to date. Fourteen artists in all traveled to ancestral sites throughout the Colorado Plateau and then, with the aid of Zuni cultural advisors, recorded the cultural landscapes in map paintings. For Zuni tribal members missing parts of traditional knowledge handed down from elders, the maps serve as guides to learn Zuni place names and Zuni history.

A:shiwi A:wan Ulohnanne – The Zuni World is funded by a grant from the Christensen Fund. Additional support for the Zuni map art program comes from the Annenberg Foundation, Lannan Foundation, and National Geographic Society Expeditions Council.

Visitors to the exhibit may purchase a full-color catalog, with reproductions of the paintings, artist's statements, and essays. This publication will be available at the MNA Bookstore and the A:shiwi A:wan Museum and Heritage Center.

In conjunction with the exhibit, the Museum’s Harold S. Colton Memorial Library has put together a book display on Zuni map art, Zuni art, and newspaper articles from MNA’s Archives, which will be on display from February 28 through March 21. The MNA library is open Monday through Friday from 1 to 5 p.m. and can be reached by phone at extension 256.

The Museum of Northern Arizona is surrounded by tremendous geological, biological, and cultural resources in one of Earth’s most spectacular landscapes. With a long and illustrious 83-year history, MNA evokes the very spirit of the Colorado Plateau, inspiring a sense of love and responsibility for the beauty and diversity of the area.

The Museum is located three miles north of historic downtown Flagstaff, at the base of the San Francisco Peaks on scenic Highway 180, on the way to the Grand Canyon. Admission is $7 adults, $6 seniors, (65+), $5 students, and $4 children (7–17). For further Museum or exhibit information, call 928/774-5213 or visit musnaz.org.

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February 10, 2011
2011 Semi-Annual Navajo Rug Auctions
Saturday, June 11, 2011 • Museum of Northern Arizona • Flagstaff, AZ
Saturday, November 12, 2011 • Coconino Center for the Arts • Flagstaff, AZ
Public Preview 9 a.m.–1 p.m., Auction 2–5 p.m. on both dates

Flagstaff Cultural Partners (FCP) and the Museum of Northern Arizona (MNA) will host two Navajo Rug Auctions this year: Saturday, June 11, 2011 at the Museum of Northern Arizona and Saturday, November 12, 2011 at the Coconino Center for the Arts. Each auction will feature over 200 vintage and contemporary Navajo weavings from artists, consigners, and the R. B. Burnham & Co. Trading Post. Rug styles being auctioned include Two Grey Hills, Ganado, Teec Nos Pos, Ye’ii, Pictorial, Wide Ruins, Storm, Sandpainting, and Eyedazzler.

There will be a public preview of all the weavings the morning of the auction from 9 a.m.–1 p.m. The live auction begins at 2 p.m. and is free to the public. A portion of the proceeds from this event will provide support for Flagstaff Cultural Partners and the Museum of Northern Arizona.

Consignments will be accepted for both auctions. Artists and other consigners are invited to bring their Navajo weavings to the Museum of Northern Arizona from Wednesday, June 1 through Friday, June 3, 2011. Experts will be on hand to view and select weavings. Consignment dates for the November auction at Coconino Center for the Arts are to be announced.

Both auctions will be led by auctioneers from the R. B. Burnham & Co. Trading Post. Bruce Burnham and his family are well-known for their work in trading Native art of the Four Corners region for five generations. He has been a trader to the Navajo for over forty years and is also the auctioneer for the Hubbell Trading Post in Ganado, Arizona. He and his wife Virginia own and operate the Burnham Trading Post and Collector’s Gallery in Sanders, Arizona, in the Navajo new lands. The Burnham family is known for their encouragement of innovation and quality in Navajo textiles, and Bruce Burnham’s expertise in buying, selling, and trading has earned him the respect of area collectors and peers nationwide.

Specialists and experts in the field of Native art and Navajo weaving will be on-site to identify handspun, hand-carded, and vintage pieces, versus acrylic yarns, to ensure quality items and prices for the auction. Information on how to evaluate and buy Navajo rugs will also be available.

Navajo rugs are a great investment. Historically, the value of rugs has appreciated with time, and in recent years, Navajo rugs have outdistanced many other investment options for their return on investment. The breadth of artists, styles, and bidding opportunities has made rug auctions an affordable way to purchase and collect high quality rugs. Rugs sell from twenty to several thousand dollars. Even if you do not buy anything, it is a great experience.

Navajo rug auctions are also an excellent opportunity to learn more about Native art. Before the auction, you can hold rugs in your hands and appreciate them up close. Detailed information and discussion about a specific piece, artist, and other aspects of the weavings will be available before and after the auction by experts in the field of Navajo weaving and culture. It is important to note that auctions allow weavers to obtain an immediate and higher return for their work.

More details about events surrounding the auction will be announced in the coming months.
Call (928) 779-2300 or visit culturalpartners.org or musnaz.org for more information.

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