For the Hopi people of the southwestern United States, katsinam are spiritual beings that guide cultural practices devoted to the search for balance with the people's earthly existence. The physical representations of the katsinam have become an integral part of the Southwest’s artistic signature, with as many as 300 distinct spirits identified in the Hopi pantheon. Hopituy examines six katsina figure types as depicted across 170 objects from the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art permanent collections in diverse media, including woodcarving, painting, basketry, and ceramics.
This publication explores how Hopi artists express the relationship between traditional protocol, cultural beliefs, and artistic license. The essays provide a helpful introduction to the artistic diversity that expresses the culture and beliefs of the Hopi people and a narrative context for the full-color images of selected works from the 2013 exhibition. Works for the publication were drawn from the FJJMA’s permanent collections, including those given by James T. Bialac, University of Oklahoma President and Mrs. David L. Boren, Richard H. and Adeline J. Fleischaker, Dr. and Mrs. R. E. Mansfield, Tom F. Meaders, and Rennard Strickland, as well as the Eugene B. Adkins Collection, which is jointly stewarded with the Philbrook Museum of Art in Tulsa.
