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Famous Southwestern Artist's Painting - $999 (Broomfield)
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Signed YES: Signed Size Type/Largest Dimension: Medium (Up to 30")
Medium: Artistic Sand Painting Date of Creation: 1970-1989
Subject: Religious & Inspirational Region of Origin: US
Eugene Baatsoslanii Joe has been labeled by many art critics as one of the greatest of the Navajo art sand painters and with good reason. He has won numerous awards for his works which melded together traditional Navajo pottery designs with Hopi Kachina figures and lent impressionist concepts to traditional themes. His works are often found in museums worth thousands of dollars. He ground his own sand and elements to compose his art and worked without preliminary sketches (to which lesser artists were forced to resort for symmetry). His pottery images can contain turquoise pieces to add dimensionality to his paintings (see a close-up of pottery image). Once complete, Baatsoslanii used a fine glaze to stabilize the surface. Done incorrectly, and the picture can be ruined. Done perfectly and the glaze adds a sparkle to the piece. Collectors often pay thousands for a single Baatsoslanii work, and among those avid enthusiasts are many famous celebrities such as Robert Redford.
The Thunderbird Kachina rising from a pottery bowl is a design from the brilliant imagination of Eugene Baatsoslanii Joe, one of the most famous Navajo sand painters in history, onto this rich "canvas". Navajo sand paintings can be divided into a couple of groups. The traditional paintings were used in healing or blessing ceremonies conducted by a Singer or Medicine Man. In composing a painting, a Singer would incorporate crushed stone and flowers, pollen, gypsum and other materials to complete an entire picture in a single day, and then destroy it that night. Even the Navajo name for these paintings translates to "place where the Gods come and go", because the paintings prepare the way to summon the force for healing or blessing. These ceremonial paintings are rarely witnessed by non-Navajos. Some Singers have demonstrated their technique at powwows or even state fairs, but never completed the paintings as they would for the sacred ceremonies. The second type of sand painting is the more familiar art form, usually created on a board combining some of the visual elements of the sacred ceremonies with crushed stone that is either natural or dyed and affixed via a glue base. The art combines Navajo symbols with artistic impression and because it is not representational of the ceremonies, but rather an interpretation, this type of sand painting is not considered disrespectful and is permitted by the tribes. This sand painting is one of the early transitional styles representing the power of the Thunderbird for healing assistance with medicine ground in the pottery bowl.
This sand painting was created on a board approximately about 18" x 24" and has been kept out of bright light to maintain its excellent condition. The signature "Baatsoslanii" is in the lower-left corner and on the back is the full litany of origin (see pictures 3-5). If you are a collector of Navajo or Western Art, this unique form will bring health and happiness to your home along with the cachet of owning one of the greatest sand painter's efforts. I will accept cash only or payments in two or three installments. Will take best offer.
BONUS*** I'll include a rare book on Navajo sand painting art by Tom Bahti and Eugene Baatsoslanii Joe. This is a difficult-to-locate limited publication, but a good addition for anyone fascinated by Native American media. The authors explain the imagery within various sand paintings in the context of the Navajo ceremonies, describing the gods, powers, and implications with regard to the message in the paintings. Because one of the authors is also the artist, the buyer can gain insights into the mindset of the artist and the art.