One of the most popular regional styles of Navajo weaving has always been the Yei and Yeibichai. Talking God is distinguished by his white mask with eagle feathers. These 60-to-95-minute units pair thinking patterns with works of art to instill a thinking disposition transferable across classroom curriculum and into the wider world. In the earliest pictorials, Yeibichai were shown in frontal view, but by 1925-1930, most Yeibichai pictorials show the dancers in profile. He also wears a spruce ruff around his neck, a white deerskin sash knotted over his left shoulder, and a kit fox pelt hanging down his back. Buy Track 0.99 Buy Track 0.99 Track Info. The Yeisperform specific dances and rituals, as directedby the Medicine Man, during the ceremony forthe desired end. These early Navajo yei weavings typically had a white or other Four areas of influence contributed to the development of Navajo yei and yeibichai weavings. In a healing ritual, the patient is sweated, and then songs are sung. The masked dancer personifies the god represented. The Yei Be Chei weavings present the dancers as they dance, perform, and enact the ceremony of the Yeis.. Add a one-line explanation of what this file represents, Navajo Yebichai (Yei Bi Chei) dancers. The Yeibichai are supernatural beings who created the Navajo people and taught them how to live in harmony with the universe. Sandpainting Rugs These finely-crafted wall hangings depict the participants in the mesmerizing Yeibichai dance, the evening conclusion of a nine-day healing rite called the Nightway. CEREMONY: Yei Bi Chei Dance Yeii figures I have, All these supposed white Native American stories are just a ploy by white Americans so they can feel easy about, Cupik and Yupik Native American History, Inupiaq and St Lawrence Island Yupik Native American History, Aleut and Alutiiq Native American History, Eyak, Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian Native American History, Mexican Zapotec Native American Indian History, Canyon de Chelly the Origin of Navajo Culture, Native American Art Navajo Pottery History, Sandpaintings Religion and Native American Art. Navajo-Artist.com, Lajasta Wauneka Gallup, New Mexico 87301, Email: info@Navajo-Artist.com Phone: (505) 409-5796. The masked dancer personifies the god represented. He attended elementary school at the Indian School at Fort Apache, but ran away and returned back to the reservation. Culture Group(s) . An ethnologist and linguistic expert, Washington Matthews, is one of the very few people who wrote extensively about it in his bookThe Night Chant,which was published in 1902. You're welcome. A Navajo set of Yeibichai Dancers. Navajo Yeibichai are masked dancers representing the Deity Yei Supernatural Beings. They each wear a blue mask with two eagle feathers above the mask. Yeibichai weavings constitute a small but highly collectible category of Navajo textiles. The last participant is Water Sprinkler, who provides an element of comic relief by shaking a tattered fox pelt at the spectators. Prior to the turn of the 20th century, Yei were not permitted to be represented in textiles or paintings in any permanent forms. The Yeis perform specific dances and rituals, as directed by the Medicine Man, during the ceremony for the desired end. ceremony. Glad that you've enjoyed it. This page was last edited on 12 July 2021, at 16:45. Middle East Edward S. Curtis. This is a Christmas present for my dad's mom. Craftsman David Dave Drake, enslaved for most of his life, produced uncommonly large ceramic jars in 19th-century South Carolina adorned by his poetic verses. It is led by a medicine man and involves the use of shock and arousal techniques to eliminate the disease, and once that has been done, songs, prayers, and sand paintings are used to restore balance and order. This work is in the public domain in the United States because it was published (or registered with the U.S. The figures in the weaving can be identified by their unique features: Not shown on this weaving are the six female dancers who would traditionally follow the males. Oceania. OTHER MATERIALS: wood; pigment; dyed wool. chai ybch plural -s 1 : a Navajo supernatural represented by a masked dancer in an initiation or curative ceremony 2 : the ceremony performed by Yeibichai dancers Word History Etymology Navaho ye'ibeshichai Love words? Curative ceremonies, with long song cycles, are emphasized by the Navajo, along with circular social dances, recalling those of the Great Plains tribes. She has always wanted a Navajo rug and this is the year! Yei weavings tend to have Navajo Rugs They usually carry spruce or feathers and wear traditional dress with a red sash. The leader of the dancers is Talking God, the feather headdress dancer to the left. Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Monument Valley Navajo Children Rest Herd Sheep Totem Pole Men Horse Postcard at the best online prices at eBay! The ceremony lasts nine days and has a healing function for tribe members and is generally performed in the winter. Most of the present-day information comes from the data recorded by the Europeans who came into North America in the sixteenth century, but even the records are not completely accurate because the Europeans were neither familiar with Native American cultures and nor they did they understand any. One of the most sacred festivals for the Navajo tribe, it is a healing ritual that seeks to cure the ailing and also restore the delicate balance and order of relationships between people within their universe. Navajo Artists Weave Magic by J. Fatima Martins Your email address will not be published. A description of the ritual and form of the Ybchai ceremony,Klj Hatl, or Night Chant ,covering its nine days of performance, will give a comprehensive idea of all Navaho nine-day ceremonies, which combine both religious and medical observances. In executing the carefully prescribed ritual dance movements, they call upon the Holy People to bestow good health on the patient and, by extension, on all those hundreds in attendance. Bringing up the rear is Water Sprinkler, the Navajo God of Precipitated Waters. Raised Outline Rugs You can findNative American beaded purses, coffee mugs, jewelry, and more. Condition: appears to be in original condition but has not been examined out of the frame. Site content 1998-2023 Adobe Gallery. The Yei Be Chei dancers are the human impersonators who perform the ceremonies. who was responsible for the creation of rugs depicting Navajo men and patients. In the 19th century, a Yeibichai dance team would consist entirely of men. Please contact Charley at charley@charleysnavajorugs.com if you have any questions about this rug or any others in the collection. yarns for the creation of the yei figures. It doesnt take any expertise to realize that Navajo rugs are beautiful works of art. Please inquire for other rates. Lukachukai was accepted during the 1950s as a second region or style center of Yei and Yeibichai Navajo Indian weavings. On view now at King Galleries in Santa Fe, New Mexico, is Charging Forward, a new two-artist show featuring the pottery of Kaa Folwell and the paintings of Derek No-Sun Brown. Free shipping for many products! Navajo Regional Rugs, Saddle Blankets, & Other Styles Information, Navajo Regional Rugs & Navajo Saddle Blankets Info. The latest news, articles, and resources sent to your inbox weekly. To that end, this week we want to focus on this skillfully made Yeibichai dancers Navajo rug and the story woven into its cloth. At some distance away is a brush enclosure where the dancers don the sacred masks which have been ritually prepared by the medicine man. USA, 1900. 01:42 Country(s) United States. We learned that male and female Yeibichai dancers are differentiated by round or square heads. Following his graduation he went to work as an illustrator for the Indian Service. Subscribe to Magzter Gold to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,000+ magazines and newspapers. He is followed by six male and six female Yeis. Often referred to as the Grandfather of the Navajo Kachinas, the Yeibichai is one of the more enjoyable features of the Navajo Kachina Dance. In the early 1900's, Yanapah, a Navajo weaver married to trader Richard Simpson and living near Farmington, New Mexico, started weaving large single and double figure vertical yei . MAKER:Unknown 6 Duration. Female Yei wear square half-masks. Copyright Office) before January 1, 1928. https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/PDMCreative Commons Public Domain Mark 1.0falsefalse. Asia The Yei Be Chei weavings present the dancers as they dance, perform, and enact the ceremony of the Yeis. This resource uses images from photographic surveys in 55 communities in 30 states across the United States as source documents to spark sustained inquiry. Regardless of the monetary value of your artwork, if it is personally meaningful, you should consider having the object conserved. Forward to Friend. Adobe Gallery Yeibichai 5 Navajo Female Yeibichai Dancer Dolls 19.5cm ,, I . Summary: Featuring more than 500 photos and maps, this is the first comprehensive, research-based history of Navajo weavings with imagery inspired by tribal sacred practices. Navajo pictorial weaving has been a mirror of the Navajo experience, with the first documented mention of pictorial weaving in 1840. . Four major rites are carried out throughout nine nights. A new Native American-owned art gallery is set to open near the end of the year in Buffalo, New York, in the middle of the Allentown historic district. Richard Simpson and living near Farmington, New Mexico, started The figures in the weaving can be identified by their unique features: Talking God leads on the left side of the weaving. There are male and female Yeibichai. into their own Navajo rug creations. TITLE:Yei Bi Chei Ganaskidi If you are someone who likes and appreciates Navajo arts and crafts, such asNavajo coin purses, check out our online store to discover a selection of products made by native Navajo artists. During ceremony, a team will be composedof fourteen dancers: the leader Yeibichai - theTalking God, six male dancers, six womendancers, and finally, the Water Sprinkler - theGod of Precipitated Waters. "Thanks so much. All hand carded, and spun, and hand dyed native wool. Clitso Dedman, consisting of fourteen figures, including representations of Talking god, Water Sprinkler, a medicine man, patient, and ten male and female dancers, realistically carved and with various attachments and accouterments. more animated form to portray the dancing of the yei during the Talking God can speak to the Navajo. elaborate nine day ceremony, it features male and female yeii, The Yeibichai weavings are highlyindividual, therefore, different elements maybe found in them. For answers, be prepared for a little detective work. These dancers are more humanlike, and uplifted feet commonly suggest the action of the dance. Curator Mary Savig details an artists journey to create the powerful performance work Metabolizing the Border that explores the physical and psychological experiences migrants face while crossing the borderlands. He often plays the role of the clown giving comic relief as he performs his dance moves. For more on the Yei Bi Chei, see Berard Haile, Head and Face Masks in Navaho Ceremonialism (Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press, 1996). Year Released. These dancers are more humanlike, and uplifted feet commonly suggest the action of the dance. MORE STORIES FROM NATIVE AMERICAN ART MAGAZINE.