Vintage Hopi Indian Kachina Doll ' Red Tail ' Hawk H. BERT Signed / Pick Up ONLY
Item History & Price
Expert carving by Harry Bert. See Bio below. No SHIPPING. Pick up ONLY in Prescott Valley, AZ. No international shipping either. Incredible Kachina doll is hand carved from cottonwood root and hand painted and decorated. There are so many details. Please review all photos. The wing span of the Red Tail Kachina doll is about 11" across. Each wing has so many individually carved feathers. There are no flaws to note on this Kachi...na. It stands level at about 9" tall. It has tiny carved hands with arms holding up the wings. Has a detailed skirt and nicely carved feet. Also has a necklace that has not been added. It is part of the original cottonwood root piece. The beak is crazy cool and features a tongue inside. There are four feathers on the top of his head. The backside features a nice tail along with more feathers near the should area. This Hawk kachina doll sits level on a bottom base and then along with another smaller base that the kachina is mounted on with his left foot. To the best of my knowledge the items that were carved and added to the doll would be the top head feathers, the two arms and wings and the ears. Rest is all carved from one piece of cottonwood root. Again sorry NO SHIPPING. The potential for damages is too great. Local Pick up in Prescott Valley, AZ. Off Fain Road and easy to get to in Viewpoint. Only one mile north of 89A. About 1 1/2 hours from Phoenix Sky harbor airport. NOTE: Seller will provide box with some pack material to nest or cocoon the Kachina for transport home. Payment through eBay/PayPal prior to pick up.
Artist Bio is from Twin Rocks Trading Post Web Site:
Harry Bert - Kachina Carver: For sixteen years Harry Bert has beensearching out the sandbars of the mighty Colorado and San Juan rivers, andscavenging the shores of Lake Powell. He is looking for driftwood- the watertumbled cottonwood roots that wash up in shoals like bleached bones. It is fromthese roots that Harry creates new life with his wood sculptures. "I tryand make it more human than sculpture, " he asserts. "How you see itis how it is in real life.""I'm not here toimpress anybody, " Harry Bert says matter-of-factly, then he makes astatement that at first may seem as though he were contradicting himself:"I'm here to do what I like to do. I get enjoyment out of doing somethingthat people really like- that's mainly why I do it."Harry- half Navajo andhalf Hopi- is an artist that is totally comfortable with himself. This selfassurance comes through in his work, which is one of the reasons they are soappealing.When asked how his workdiffers from other artists, he answers, "I try to make them more realisticthan anybody else does. I try and see my friends dancing in my mind, thenthat's how I make my Kachinas."Harry uses hand tools to sawaway unwanted wood, then to shape his piece and carve in details. Lastly hesands the figures, burning the wood slightly so that the acrylic water colorsdon't seep and run through the wood."I have to have theright wood, " Harry says, "The wood has to feel right. In some piecesof wood the form's already in it- usually it just comes out by itself."Being a Kachina carverisn't something Harry imagined for himself when he was growing up. From thetime he was 8 years old Harry lived the school months in a foster home in Orem, Utah, graduating from Orem High School in the early 70's. "When I wenthome I never felt like I was home, " he remembers. "That's the reasonI just left again and went to school."After high school Harrywent to a trade school where he took automotive classes. Then he attendedNorthern Arizona University where he earned a teaching certificate. "Iwanted to be a mechanic, but I ended up just being a teacher." Harrytaught art at Tuba City High School for six years.His cousins first got himinterested in carving Kachina dancers. When he was home, he explains, "Iwould mingle around with everyone else. During the night we would have a dance, or go sing in the Kivas. During the day there was nothing else to do but carve, so I tried to learn. When I started I wasn't too good at it. During the wintertime there was nothing to do, so I tried to learn more."At the same time he waslearning about his ancestry. "My friends taught me after I got back, "he says, "They told me, 'A spiritual person helps you along, protectsyou.'"Now Harry lives a lifeclose to his roots, and carves full time, supporting his wife and threedaughters on his income. His wife makes pottery and they travel to Indianshows, sharing their art with others, learning more about their Native Americanheritage. "Sometimes I get new ideas, " he adds, as he talks aboutmaking a continual effort to improve his Kachinas. "With each one I tryand do my very best."
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Artist Bio is from Twin Rocks Trading Post Web Site:
Harry Bert - Kachina Carver: For sixteen years Harry Bert has beensearching out the sandbars of the mighty Colorado and San Juan rivers, andscavenging the shores of Lake Powell. He is looking for driftwood- the watertumbled cottonwood roots that wash up in shoals like bleached bones. It is fromthese roots that Harry creates new life with his wood sculptures. "I tryand make it more human than sculpture, " he asserts. "How you see itis how it is in real life.""I'm not here toimpress anybody, " Harry Bert says matter-of-factly, then he makes astatement that at first may seem as though he were contradicting himself:"I'm here to do what I like to do. I get enjoyment out of doing somethingthat people really like- that's mainly why I do it."Harry- half Navajo andhalf Hopi- is an artist that is totally comfortable with himself. This selfassurance comes through in his work, which is one of the reasons they are soappealing.When asked how his workdiffers from other artists, he answers, "I try to make them more realisticthan anybody else does. I try and see my friends dancing in my mind, thenthat's how I make my Kachinas."Harry uses hand tools to sawaway unwanted wood, then to shape his piece and carve in details. Lastly hesands the figures, burning the wood slightly so that the acrylic water colorsdon't seep and run through the wood."I have to have theright wood, " Harry says, "The wood has to feel right. In some piecesof wood the form's already in it- usually it just comes out by itself."Being a Kachina carverisn't something Harry imagined for himself when he was growing up. From thetime he was 8 years old Harry lived the school months in a foster home in Orem, Utah, graduating from Orem High School in the early 70's. "When I wenthome I never felt like I was home, " he remembers. "That's the reasonI just left again and went to school."After high school Harrywent to a trade school where he took automotive classes. Then he attendedNorthern Arizona University where he earned a teaching certificate. "Iwanted to be a mechanic, but I ended up just being a teacher." Harrytaught art at Tuba City High School for six years.His cousins first got himinterested in carving Kachina dancers. When he was home, he explains, "Iwould mingle around with everyone else. During the night we would have a dance, or go sing in the Kivas. During the day there was nothing else to do but carve, so I tried to learn. When I started I wasn't too good at it. During the wintertime there was nothing to do, so I tried to learn more."At the same time he waslearning about his ancestry. "My friends taught me after I got back, "he says, "They told me, 'A spiritual person helps you along, protectsyou.'"Now Harry lives a lifeclose to his roots, and carves full time, supporting his wife and threedaughters on his income. His wife makes pottery and they travel to Indianshows, sharing their art with others, learning more about their Native Americanheritage. "Sometimes I get new ideas, " he adds, as he talks aboutmaking a continual effort to improve his Kachinas. "With each one I tryand do my very best."
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