BLACK MESA WEAVERS
FOR LIFE
AND LAND™
NAVAJO DINE' WEAVINGS FOR SALE--
FAIR TRADE FROM THE SOURCE™
Featuring a Historic First--Black
Mesa Churro Blanket--
Designed by Black Mesa Weavers and Produced by Pendleton
From Our Land
to Your Home™
"Spider Woman instructed the Navajo
women how to weave on a loom which Spider Man told them how to
make. The crosspoles were made of sky and earth cords, the warp
sticks of sun rays, the healds of rock crystal and sheet lightning.
The batten was a sun halo, white shell made the comb. There were
four spindles: one a stick of zigzag lightning with a whorl of
cannel coal [black jet]; one a stick of flash lightning with a whorl of turquoise;
a third had a stick of sheet lightning with a whorl of abalone;
a rain streamer formed the stick of the fourth spindle, and its
whorl was white shell." --Epigraph
to Spider Woman: A Story of Navajo Weavers and Chanters,
by Gladys A. Reichard, first published 1934, republished by Rio
Grande Press, Inc., Glorieta, NM, 1968. [The whorls of the four spindles are the stones of the four directions, and also of the four sacred mountains in those four directions that surround and protect Dine' Bike'yah ("Where the People Walk"), Navajoland, their homeland.
A word about the conventional English "categories" or "styles" of Dine' weaving: The names of trading posts and/or geographic areas (such as "Two Grey Hills," "Crystal," "Wide Ruins," eye-dazzler," and so on, which are commonly used as descriptive titles in English of Dine' designs, bear little relationship to the reality of the weavings, their meanings and sources. Let the words of a Dine' speak for themselves:
The Corn Pollen Path of Diné Rug Weaving
By Verna Clinton
The art of rug weaving and care of Churro sheep reciprocates the quality of Diné relationship with nature and cosmic order. It is this sovereign way of life acquired through millennia of sacred songs and prayers that The Holy Deities, Spider Man and Spider Woman, bestowed upon the Diné. The Diné, meaning “The People,” yearned for creative endeavors to sustain their minds and fill a void in their livelihood.
Inherent in the beauty of rug weaving is the artistic achievement reflecting every weaver’s frame of mind, creating designs of continual mathematical movement and regeneration of symbolism acknowledged for the Diné.
Spider Man and Spider Woman’s gift included the powerful weaving implements: the spindle, cedar combs, battens, and slender wooden rods, skeins of wool, twine, warp, and loom. The loom itself is a sacred living phenomenon of endurance and passive power found in female and male entities, negative and positive factors as well as in water, air, and land. All of these forms are necessary for completion of a rug and to balance the mind. Only then is the rug finished in all its sacred beauty and power of the weaver.
----
Verna Clinton, from Star Mountain, Arizona, is a Diné educator, teacher, Arizona State University Liaison/Advisor, curriculum developer, artist, and author. She is a member of the Black Mesa Weavers for Life and Land Advisory Council/Board of Directors. Her late father was a Hataalii (medicineman), and her mother is a weaver and devoted raiser of Churro sheep. A sixth-grade teacher in Chinle, Arizona, Ms. Clinton’s research interests include the education of Native gifted children, Diné land and relocation issues, and study of the Diné-Hopi Awatovi and Tobacco clans.
©2006 Verna Clinton and Black Mesa Weavers for Life and Land, Inc. Translated by Verna Clinton from her original Diné.
Write to: Black Mesa Weavers
P.O. Box 95204, Newton, MA 02495
or email : carol@blackmesaweavers.org
to place an order, or for more information. Or call toll-free
1-866-4-CHURRO (866-424-8776) Boston/Eastern Standard Time 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
----------------------------------
"The spindle, used to spin wool and
mohair into yarn and warp strings, was constructed in the fourth
world. ... The top or tip of the spindle is the center of the
zenith; the bottom point is the nadir. The disk is the earth." (Wesley Thomas, weaver, "Personification
of Navajo Weaving," in: Woven by the Grandmothers,
National Museum of the American Indian, NY, 1996, p. 40).
And every woman who was wisehearted spun with her hands;
and they brought that which they wove of sky-blue and purple,
of scarlet and of fine white cloth. And all the women whose hearts
stirred them up in wisdom spun goats' fleece. (Exodus
35:25-26)
Ahe'hee'--our profound thanks to all the people who have supported
and encouraged us. With your help, there is hope for the future
of the Dine' on Black Mesa--for the water, land, livestock, and
lifeways...and for the well-being of all the people--Dine' and
Hopi both--who share this sacred place.
Your purchase of these weavings, wool, and other products from
the Black Mesa Dine' will help make their hopes and dreams for
economic self-sufficiency and community development a reality.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mission: Our work is grounded
in the knowledge that human and environmental justice are inseparable.
UPDATES ON 8TH AND 9TH NAVAJO-CHURRO WOOL BUYS, AND THE 3rd AND FINAL NUMBERED LIMITED EDITION OF 125 BLACK MESA BLANKETS, PRODUCED WITH PENDLETON WOOLEN MILLS:
THANKS TO YOUR SUPPORT THROUGH SALES, DONATIONS, AND PRESOLD FLEECE, WE WERE ABLE TO HOLD OUR 8TH NAVAJO-CHURRO WOOL BUs IN JUNE 2010.
THANKS ALSO TO THE GENEROUS DONATION OF AN ANONYMOUS DONOR, AS WELL AS SALES --WHICH HAVE BEEN VERY SLOW BECAUSE OF THE RECESSION/DEPRESSION THAT BEGAN IN 2008 -- WE WERE ABLE TO HOLD OUR 9TH NAVAJO-CHURRO WOOL BUY IN JUNE 2011, PURCHASING MORE THAN 2,600 LBS. OF HIGH-QUALITY PURE CHURRO.
Thanks to the support and generosity of the Christensen Fund, the San Jose Museum of Quilts and Textiles in San Jose, California, sponsored the 3rd and final edition of the Black Mesa Blanket, produced by Pendleton Woolen Mills (same colors as 2nd ed.). YOU MAY PURCHASE THIS BLANKET DIRECTLY FROM THE SAN JOSE MUSEUM OF QUILTS & TEXTILES for $270 (members; or $300 for nonmembers). Call Teresa Magallon at 408.971.0323 x. 14 to reach the gift shop or go to http://www.sjquiltmuseum.org There are only seven numberd 3rd ed. blankets remaining in stock: numbers 61, 64, 68, 96, 98, 99, and 101.
Black Mesa Blanket, female side, 3rd limited edition, San Jose Museum of Quilts & Textiles (80 in. x 64 in.)
Ahe'hee'--Thank you!
Meanwhile, please see the weavings available below, and visit our "WOOL" for sale page to see the handspun yarn and new mini-mill (indigenous, nonprofit) Churro yarns we have in stock.
TO OUR KNOWLEDGE, WE ARE THE ONLY NONPROFIT, FAIR TRADE ORGANIZATION BUYING CHURRO WOOL DIRECTLY FROM THE DINE' SHEPHERDS IN ANY SIGNIFICANT QUANTITY--COMPARED TO THE LOCAL DEALER MARKET PRICE OF ABOUT 5-10 CENTS/LB OR LESS.
WE ARE ALSO, TO OUR KNOWLEDGE, THE ONLY NONPROFIT FAIR TRADE INDIGENOUS ORGANIZATION THAT POSTS HOW MUCH THE WEAVERS AND HANDSPINNERS ARE PAID FOR THEIR WORK (they set the prices, which are less than retail), AND HOW MUCH IS PAID TO THE SHEEP RAISERS FOR THEIR RAW CHURRO WOOL.
WATER--->LAND-->PLANTS-->SHEEP-->WOOL-->YARN-->WEAVINGS
THIS IS THE CYCLE OF SUSTAINABLE LIFEWAYS WE ARE WORKING TO MAINTAIN.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A note on Fair Trade: From
a letter to the Los Angeles Times, January 29, 2004:
"Navajo Weavers deserve
the credit"
"...Churro sheep were
rescued from near extinction by the Navajos. Isolated in the
far northwest corner of the reservation, traditional Navajos
have kept the breed alive and have recently begun a renaissance
of traditional weaving.
I encourage those who have an interest in Navajo weavings to
buy either directly from the weaver or from rug dealers who disclose
how much the weaver receives from the sale of each piece." (--Jordan S. Price, Lake
Arrowhead, CA)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Weavings for sale -- (click on thumbnails to see larger
images, details, and prices).
A Navajo weaving,
circa 1860, was appraised on PBS national television for $350,000-$500,000.
At a January 2002 "Antiques Roadshow" in Tucson, Arizona,
a striped blanket that had been kept folded by its owner over
the back of a chair was identified as an early Navajo "chief's
blanket."
Powerful, wonderfully balanced striped designs woven on vertical
looms are among the earliest Dine' wearing blankets, and the
extraordinary "chief's blankets" were highly valued
in trade with other American Indian tribes. The photo below was
taken from the TV screen when "Antiques Roadshow" was
shown on WGBH-TV, Boston, Mass., as the blanket was being appraised.
On Black Mesa today, the same quality
of rare Churro wool is being bred, shorn, washed, carded, spun,
dyed, and handwoven on the same kind of vertical loom as this
150-year-old $350,000-$500,000 blanket.
A little early for our wool buy, some goats
wait outside the door to the hay shed, where the Hardrock Chapter
is storing and selling hay to area residents. They're eating
a bit of hay remnants near the door (June 22, 2006).
We held our 4th, 5th,
6th, 7th, 8th, and 9thannual Navajo-Churro wool buys in June 2005, 2006, 2007,
2008, 2010, and 2011 at the Hardrock Chapter, where we bought about 2,400
lbs. (in 2005), 2,000 lbs. (in 2006), 2,000 lbs. (in 2007),
2,314 lbs. (in 2008), 3,000+ lbs. (in 2010), and about 3,000 lbs. (in 2011) of rare Navajo-Churro wool, and continue to receive
new weavings, along with photos of the land, people, and sheep
from which they came. SEE
WEAVINGS POSTED BELOW.
In 2003, thanks to a grant
from the Greenville Foundation, we installed a solar-powered
windmill to pump livestock water for a family raising Churro
sheep and angora goats, and a second one will be installed at
another homesite this summer. At last reports, the solar well
was pumping abundant water and the family no longer had to drive
to haul drinking water in barrels for livestock 20 miles round
trip. The same savings in energy and time will become available
to the second family. More and ready access to water means more
animals can be sustained as well as crops, herbs, and dye plants--using
renewable resources, such as sun and wind. We hope this project
will grow throughout the Black Mesa region, and can serve as
a model for sustainable agriculture throughout the Southwest
and the United States.
Our
profound thanks to all our customers who have bought weavings,
wool, handspun yarn, and other items.
PLEASE CHECK OUT SOME SPECIAL SAVINGS! Fair trade prices are paid to the weavers who set their
own prices, which are published with each weaving -- and all proceeds from sales go to support and sustain the work
of our nonprofit organization. To the best of our knowledge, we are the only fair-trade nonprofit organization that posts how much the weavers, handspinners, and sheep raisers receive individually for their work. We have been doing this since we started our enterprise almost 15 years ago, because we believe it is important that the public know how much the makers of these items receive for their work, prices that they set themselves and that are based on the reality of fair-trade living costs in the USA.
Many weavings we've sold are on the individual pages that link
from these thumbnails (of weavings currently in stock or on hold).
If you see a weaving that you like and has been sold, another
similar one can likely be commissioned.
Here are weavings currently
in stock. A few that were recently returned to a weaver at her request
are also listed, and may still be available, or similar ones may
be commissioned.
---------------------
A Homage to the Diné Churro Rug Weavers
by Verna Clinton
All the Diné rug weavers hope to express their philosophy and spirituality in mathematical art design.
In the region of Star Mountain, Diné weavers incorporate Churro wool into rugs of art only an exclusive few can artistically develop. The love of weaving all begins for a child from within their mother’s womb. They first hear the rhythmic sounds of the weaving battens beating on the upright loom. The resonance of vibrations from the weaving implements soon becomes familiar, and is the foundation of that child’s emergence and spirituality.
From time immemorial, Diné matriarchs passed down their rug weaving skills using the principles of geometry, symmetry, lines, shapes, hues, and tones without any formal training. Inherently, rug weavers learned through the hard and often tedious work of wool preparation—from shearing the wool, carding, spinning, and dyeing the skeins of yarn. They often choose vibrant vegetal dye colors, inspired by their environment, the canyons, painted deserts, birds, and wildlife to express what they see and to convey their mathematical magic in a rug. The learner steps into this systematic process with precision and skill, producing a one-of-a-kind weaving—and it is finished in beauty.
-----------------------------
Verna Clinton, from Star Mountain, Arizona, is a Diné educator, teacher, Arizona State University instructor, curriculum developer, artist, and author. She is a member of the Black Mesa Weavers for Life and Land Advisory Council/Board of Directors. Her late father was a Hataalii (medicineman), and her mother is a weaver and devoted raiser of Churro sheep. A sixth-grade teacher in Chinle, Arizona, Ms. Clinton’s research interests include the education of Native gifted children, Diné land and relocation issues, and study of the Diné-Hopi Awatovi and Tobacco clans.
©2011 Verna Clinton and Black Mesa Weavers for Life and Land, Inc
Write to: Black Mesa Weavers, P.O.
Box 95204, Newton, MA 02495
or email : carol@migrations.com
to place an order, or for more information. Or call toll-free
1-866-4-CHURRO (1-866-424-8776) Boston/Eastern Standard Time
10 am-7 pm
"We
live in a world in which we need to share responsibility. It's
easy to say 'It's not my child, not my community, not my problem.'
Then there are those who see the need and respond. I consider
those people my heroes." (Fred Rogers, host of
"Mr. Rogers Neighborhood," in an interview
(from the Boston Globe). Mr. Rogers died on
February 20, 2003, at the age of 74--he was a good man.
Buying a weaving at the Cultural Survival
summer bazaar, August 6-7, 2005, Tiverton Four Corners, RI
On the left in the photo above is
the sample prototype (female side) of the1st ed. of the "Black Mesa Blanket"(tm)
designed by the Dine' and produced of 100% Navajo-Churro weft together
with Pendleton Woolen Mills in a limited edition of 250, cosponsored
by the Navajo Nation Museum in Window Rock, Arizona, and the
Museum of Northern Arizona, in Flagstaff. A historic first.
The blanket is 80 in. x 64 in., in black, tan, gold, and grey.
JANUARY 2009:
2ND NUMBERED LIMITED EDITION OF THE BLACK MESA BLANKET SOLD OUT
APRIL 2013: BUT A 3rd AND FINAL NUMBERED LIMITED EDITION (125 BLANKETS) OF THE BLACK MESA BLANKET IS STILL AVAILABLE FROM THE SAN JOSE MUSEUM OF QUILTS & TEXTILES:
TO ORDER A 3rd EDITION BLACK MESA BLANKET--ONLY 7 NUMBERED 3RD ED. BLANKETS ARE STILL AVAILABLE:
Thanks to the support and generosity of the Christensen Fund, the San Jose Museum of Quilts and Textiles in San Jose, California, sponsored the 3rd and final edition of the Black Mesa Blanket, produced by Pendleton Woolen Mills (same colors as 2nd ed.). YOU MAY PURCHASE THIS BLANKET DIRECTLY FROM THE SAN JOSE MUSEUM OF QUILTS & TEXTILES for $270 (members; or $300 for nonmembers). Call Teresa Magallon at 408.971.0323 x. 14 to reach the gift shop or go to http://www.sjquiltmuseum.org There are only seven numberd 3rd ed. blankets remaining in stock: numbers 61, 64, 68, 96, 98, 99, and 101.
APRIL 2013: TO ORDER A 3rd EDITION BLACK MESA BLANKET--ONLY 7 NUMBERED 3RD ED. BLANKETS ARE STILL AVAILABLE-
Thanks to the support and generosity of the Christensen Fund, the San Jose Museum of Quilts and Textiles in San Jose, California, sponsored the 3rd and final edition of the Black Mesa Blanket, produced by Pendleton Woolen Mills (same colors as 2nd ed.). YOU MAY PURCHASE THIS BLANKET DIRECTLY FROM THE SAN JOSE MUSEUM OF QUILTS & TEXTILES for $270 (members; or $300 for nonmembers). Call Teresa Magallon at 408.971.0323 x. 14 to reach the gift shop or go to http://www.sjquiltmuseum.org There are only seven numberd 3rd ed. blankets remaining in stock: numbers 61, 64, 68, 96, 98, 99, and 101.
Black Mesa Blanket, female
side, 2nd (and 3rd) limited numbered edition, 80 in. x 64. in.
Nos. 1-87 cosponsored by and available at the Heard Museum,
Phoenix, Arizona. Deep midnight blue, rich "Ganado"
red, warm wheat, and warm tan, 100% Churro weft from our 2008
7th Annual Black Mesa Navajo-Churro Wool Buy, containing entire
2008 and some 2007 white Churro shearing (©2008
Black Mesa Weavers for Life and Land, Inc. All rights resserved.
Photos of 2nd ed. blanket courtesy Heard Museum. Produced by
Pendleton Woolen Mills).
APRIL 2013: TO ORDER A 3rd EDITION BLACK MESA BLANKET--ONLY 7 NUMBERED 3RD ED. BLANKETS ARE STILL AVAILABLE-
Thanks to the support and generosity of the Christensen Fund, the San Jose Museum of Quilts and Textiles in San Jose, California, sponsored the 3rd and final edition of the Black Mesa Blanket, produced by Pendleton Woolen Mills (same colors as 2nd ed.). YOU MAY PURCHASE THIS BLANKET DIRECTLY FROM THE SAN JOSE MUSEUM OF QUILTS & TEXTILES for $270 (members; or $300 for nonmembers). Call Teresa Magallon at 408.971.0323 x. 14 to reach the gift shop or go to http://www.sjquiltmuseum.org There are only seven numberd 3rd ed. blankets remaining in stock: numbers 61, 64, 68, 96, 98, 99, and 101.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Black Mesa Blanket, male
side, 2nd limited numbered edition, 80 in. x 64. in.
Nos. 1-87 cosponsored by and available at the Heard Museum,
Phoenix, Arizona. Deep midnight blue, rich "Ganado"
red, warm wheat, and warm tan, 100% Churro weft from our 2008
7th Annual Black Mesa Navajo-Churro Wool Buy, containing entire
2008 and some 2007 white Churro shearing (©2008
Black Mesa Weavers for Life and Land, Inc. All rights reserved.
Photos of 2nd ed. blanket courtesy Heard Museum. Produced by
Pendleton Woolen Mills).
The numbered 2nd edition BLANKET was cosponsored by THE HEARD MUSEUM:
2301 N. Central Avenue
Phoenix, AZ 85004
Tel: 602-252-8848
Web: www.heard.org
The Heard Museum of Native Cultures and Art
in Phoenix, Arizona, has cosponsored our 2nd limited numbered edition
of the Black Mesa Blanket.Without the partnership of the Heard,
which has done so much to preserve and encourage the visions
of indigenous peoples, this Black Mesa Blanket would be just
a dream, and we are deeply grateful for their support and encouragement.
Thanks also to the caring and generosity of many people who helped
make it possible, the white fleece of every Churro sheep from
our 2008 7th Annual Navajo-Churro Wool Buy, and some from 2007,
has been woven as the weft. We are proud to again join with Pendleton
to produce this historic blanket. Now it comes to you from all
of us with appreciation for your support of a sustainable way
of life, which cares for the Earth and its future.
FAIR TRADE, MADE IN THE
USA, NONPROFIT, A UNIQUE AND HISTORIC ENTERPRISE OF THE DINE'
(NAVAJO): PLEASE HELP THIS SUSTAINABLE, ENVIRONMENTALLY SOUND,
CULTURALLY CENTRAL AND SACRED NAVAJO-CHURRO SHEEP AND WEAVING TRADITION
TO CONTINUE AND TO THRIVE--WALKING LIGHTLY ON THE EARTH...
--------------------------------------------------
Our profound thanks to everyone who has bought our Black Mesa Blankets this year. We hope they kept you warm in past winters. Having held our 8th and 9th Annual Navajo-Churro Wool Busy in 2010 and 2011, and thanks to the generosity and support of the Christensen Fund and the sponsorship of the San Jose Museum of Quilts & Textiles, we have again been able to produce a 3rd and final numbered limited edition (same colors as 2nd ed.) of these unique and rare all-Churro weft blankets together with Pendleton Woolen Mills.
----------------------------
First edition, February 3,
2006; completion of first edition, fall 2006; open
limited edition, winter 2006-2007:
The
Black Mesa Blanket
A Historic First
Enduring Vision, Sustaining Community
Designed by
Dine' (Navajo) shepherds and weavers, with weft spun from their
rare
Navajo-Churro fleece,
this saddle blanket motif moves from water through clouds toward
land,
the sacred Black Mesa center,
and celebrates unbroken Dine' traditions.
The Navajo Nation Museum
in Window Rock, Arizona, and the Museum of Northern Arizona
in Flagstaff, are cosponsors of this endeavor. Without the
support and partnership of these two institutions, which have
done so much to preserve and encourage the visions of indigenous
peoples, the Black Mesa Blanket would still be a dream. We are
deeply grateful for their support and encouragement. Now this
blanket comes to you from all of us with appreciation for your
support of a sustainable and self-sufficient way of life.
This very limited number of Black Mesa Blankets (there was only
enough white Churro wool from the 2006 shearing to produce 141
blankets) is currently available for sale in the gift shops of
both museums, through our organization, and in the Pendleton
Home Store, in Portland, Oregon. The blanket is all-Churro weft.
80 in. x 64 in.
We also want to thank Pendleton
Woolen Mills for their support of this project--their collaboration
and expertise in working with us closely every step of the way
has enabled us all to reach this unique and historic moment.
It has been a pleasure and an honor to work
with all the wonderful people we have met along the way in this
adventure. Ahe'hee'--Thank you all.
FAIR TRADE, MADE IN THE USA, NONPROFIT, A UNIQUE AND HISTORIC ENTERPRISE OF THE DINE'
(NAVAJO): PLEASE HELP THIS LIFEWAY--SUSTAINABLE, ENVIRONMENTALLY
SOUND, CULTURALLY CENTRAL AND SACRED NAVAJO-CHURRO SHEEP AND WEAVING
TRADITION TO CONTINUE AND TO THRIVE--WALKING LIGHTLY ON THIS
EARTH...
Ahe'hee'--Many thanks to
everyone who bought a blanket in 2007, 2008, 2009, and 2010.
Thank you for your help in these terrible economic times for our country
and the world by purchasing these rare and historically unique
blankets and weavings. All our funds are currently invested in them, and in
the 2007 Churro wool buy, which we were able to hold in June
2007. At our sixth annual wool buy, we could buy 2,000 pounds
of Churro fleece from the Black Mesa area Dine'--because of your
generous support and purchases of handspun weavings, handspun
yarn, and the Black Mesa Blankets. And at out 7th Annual wool buy, we purchased
2,314 lbs.
Though it's now summer, time of drought and prayers for rain,
winter will still return, though the climate is changing and
our planet is warming. "In June 2005, at a Dine' culture
fourth grade school program in Chinle, Arizona, the students
examined the sample blanket. A boy put his hands on it, felt
the wool, and said with a smile: 'It's good--it's warm!'"
February 2010: The heavy snow and rains of this past winter will help the grasses, trees, and plants when spring arrives, but the underlying and ongoing drought, aquifer drawdowns, river and water use problems, and increasing desertification of the entire Southwest continues. Let us help to save our only home, by walking more lightly on
the Earth and respecting all life...
(Above, or on left) Female side. (Below,
or on right) Male side (both photos courtesy and
©2006 David H. Davis). (80 in. x 64 in.) $349.
Water border and one of four directions, female side of
blanket.
Female side: (on left) Black Mesa in center, surrounded
by clouds, rain, and weaving tools (on right) blanket
folded with storytag and logos.
Black Mesa in center, male side of blanket.
A Black Mesa Blanket on Vancouver Island, Canada, female side,
surrounded by Northwest Coast Indian artwork.
Mission: Black
Mesa Weavers for Life and Land -- Fair Trade from the Source™
The Diné (Navajo) of Black Mesa in northeastern Arizona
are one of the most traditional indigenous populations within
the U.S. Their history is one of ongoing struggle to sustain
their culture, land, water, and way of life. Black Mesa Weavers
for Life and Land was cofounded in 1998 by a group of Diné
and a Massachusetts resident to help restore economic and social
self-sufficiency to the region through preservation of traditional
lifeways based on shepherding and fair-trade marketing of their
products--primarily Navajo-Churro wool, mohair, and weavings.
Faced with problems of economic and cultural survival in a fragile
ecosystem, our organization works with local Diné families
and communities to expand their traditional economy within the
contemporary marketplace through sustainable development,
and reinvests in the strength of the community.
Since 1999, we have been working with the Black Mesa Diné
to conserve the land that nurtures them. We have demonstrated
how a volunteer, grassroots organization can improve the lives
and well-being of people through the work of their own hands.
We have implemented ways to overcome the limited market access
to which the Diné have historically been restricted and
empower them to get their products to a wider market by fair
trading from the source.
Since 2002, we have held annual wool buys, and in 2003 launched
a wool-processing microenterprise for handspun
Diné yarn. We are cooperating with other indigenous
and nonprofit organizations to develop the community-based marketing
of Navajo-Churro wool and mohair. We are also advocating for
the development of renewable energy resources,the phasing out
of fossil fuels, and the conservation and restoration of the
aquifers that provide water to the entire region.
Our work is grounded in the knowledge that human and environmental
justice are inseparable.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
August 18, 2008--A Belated Thank
You and Update
"Charities feeling the effects
of economic slowdown"
(--Boston Globe, Friday, May 2, 2008)
On behalf of the entire advisory council/board
of directors of Black Mesa Weavers for Life and Land, our profound
thanks and deep appreciation for the kindness and generosity
of everyone who made it possible for us to hold our 7th Annual
Churro Wool Buy on June 5-6, 2009, at the Hardrock Chapter on Black
Mesa.
I apologize for this delay in acknowledging
your donations and grants. As coordinator of our organization,
I wanted to send each of you a personal card and bit of Churro
wool right away, as a small token of saying "Ahe'hee'--thank
you--for making this wool buy possible. But I've been having
some health problems, and also had knee surgery on July 9, and
it's been a hectic and difficult summer for me personally. So,
please accept our thanks for now via our website. I am recovering,
and will be in touch with each one of you individually as soon
as possible, and hope to share some more good news in the near
future.
Meanwhile, many Dine', led by our field
coordinator, Lorraine Herder, organized and held a very successful
wool buy. We were able to buy a total of 2,314 lbs. of high-quality
Churro wool (1,616.26 lbs. of white and 697.19 lbs. of natural-colored
fleece), from a total of 31 households who came from 11 Chapters
(communities), paying $1.90/lb. to each Churro producer. In addition
to the wool purchased, a representative from the USDA/FSA was
again on hand to sign up the Churro wool producers for this year's
wool reimbursement (an additional 20 cents/lb.).
I've received some wonderful new handspun
yarn, now posted on the "Wool" page, and, as this winter
still has months to go, there is time to think of weaving,
and knitting... About 100 lbs. of raw Churro wool has also arrived
recently, and the raw Churro wool still in stock has been posted on the "Wool" for sale page [As of 2010, all the raw fleece is sold out here in Massachusetts, but is available directly from Arizona, if you contact me by email: carol@blackmesaweavers.org or our toll free number (866-4-CHURRO / 866-414-8776, 10 am-7 pm EST]
May you be blessed with goodness--health,
sustenance, lovingkindness, and a world in balance,
and may you walk in beauty always...
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
AUGUST 1, 2006
Our fifth annual Churro wool buy was held June 23-24, 2006,
at the Hardrock Chapter, and we found that there were fewer churro
sheep and thus less wool available this year than we were prepared
to buy. We paid $1.90/lb. for raw fleece this year (again up
from last year)--while local wool dealers were still paying about
five cents/lb., or rejecting churro entirely! Thus, together
with the USDA reimbursement of about 22 cents/lb., churro woolgrowers
are getting at least $2/10/lb. for their raw fleece.
The drought's effects, however, have resulted in less wool produced
per average adult sheep--instead of 6.5 lbs. average fleece per
adult, the average this year was more like 4 lbs. per sheep,
as the animals conserved energy for their survival. The drought
is catastrophic and unrelenting, and a manifestation of the extremes
of weather patterns being felt throughout the U.S. and the world
as global warming intensifies.
But some rains have begun to fall in
late July and August--not enough to really break the drought,
but every drop is a blessing. And the rains have been continuing,
with the onset of an early winter...
Ahe'hee'--our thanks to the Hardrock
Chapter for again hosting our wool buy, to all the people who
worked so hard at the wool buy and afterwards, and to our field
coordinator! Many thanks also to Teresa (from Navajo and Apache
counties) and Calvin (from Coconino County) of the USDA/Farm
Service Agency for again coming to Hardrock and registering the
Dine' woolgrowers for the reimbursement program.
Below is a photo of a small blanket woven by Churro sheep raiser
and master weaver Lorraine Herder, our field coordinator, and
some of her dyed wool from which this blanket was woven.
MBM-496. Lorraine Herder 
MBM-496. Lorraine Herder--vegetal dyed
churro wool
This weaving is a record
of many of the vegetable and natural churro colors traditional
in Dine' weaving--vegetation that is fast disappearing
or already almost gone in this devastating drought. Marykatherine
Smith, of Big Mountain, can no longer offer her HerbsWerk(tm)
products for sale because the plants have dried up. Hay--costing
$11/bale (and more in some places)--is almost all the food there
is for the livestock to eat, and water must be bought, paid for,
and hauled many miles for the animals and for people just about
daily. With the beginning of a good rainy season late this summer,
which seems to be continuing as winter begins in the region,
we hope that the plants, trees, and grasses will be restored
and renewed for next spring.
We are fortunate to have a good amount of this vegetable-dyed
handspun yarn (see the "wool for sale" page--click
on "Wool" above) and natural colored yarn for sale,
as well as the weavings below.
We are also producing another, smaller run of the Black Mesa
Blanket and hope to have it available in time for the holiday
season this winter. You can still buy this first edition rare and historic
blanket through the Navajo Nation Museum, as noted above.
Thank you for your support of our fair trade endeavors, helping
to sustain endangered but still enduring lifeways.
Navajo Vision: Art, Land, and Justice--Exhibit and
sale of weavings at Meredith College, Raleigh, North Carolina,
March 5 through April 9, 2006.
August 2005: We are honored
to have recently received this beautiful, handpainted bowl from
the Center for Sustainable Environments, Northern Arizona University,
Flagstaff, Arizona, acknowledging our participation in the work
to sustain lifeways, water, and land on the Colorado Plateau.
Ahe'hee'--Thank you! Buy the book, "A New Plateau"
to learn about 38 organizations and people engaged in many aspects
of this crucial work.
"The
Real Sheep"--Living on Earth--NPR Nationwide Broadcast
The excellent Daniel Kraker story on the Churro,
from our fourth wool buy last June, and with poignant personal
history commentary by Dr. Lyle McNeal (broadcast out of KNAU
"All Things Considered" June 26, 2005), has been expanded
to 8+ minutes and was broadcast on several hundred NPR stations
on the NPR "Living on Earth" program on October 28,
2005. It's archived on the Living on Earth website--full audio,
complete script to read, and photos: http://www.livingonearth.org/shows/segments.htm?programID=05-P13-00043&segmentID=5
Write to: Black Mesa Weavers, P.O. Box
95204, Newton, MA 02495
or email: carol@blackmesaweavers.org
to place an order, or for more information.
Or call toll-free 866-4-CHURRO (1-866-424-8776) Boston/Eastern
time 10 am to 7 pm.
Portable loom with weaving begun, a bag of dark brown churro
wool, and Dine' spindle with handspun yarn, James A. Michener
Art Museum, Doylestown, PA, December 9, 2001. An "empty
field" saddle blanket of handspun churro wool by Betty Nez
(see MBM-209 and MBM-210, above) is folded under
the loom where the weaver sat while weaving.
"The spindle, used to spin wool and mohair into yarn
and warp strings, was constructed in the fourth world. ... The
top or tip of the spindle is the center of the zenith; the bottom
point is the nadir. The disk is the earth." (Wesley
Thomas, weaver, "Personification of Navajo Weaving,"
in: Woven by the Grandmothers, National Museum of the
American Indian, NY, 1996, p. 40).
We are pleased
to announce the publication of an important and beautiful new
book:
A New Plateau: Sustaining the Lands
and Peoples of Canyon Country
"New Release! A refreshing
look at 38 'modern pioneers' in the Four Corners region who have
found ways to make a living while enriching their communities,
economies and lands." The first
chapter in Section Two, Ranching, is "Sheep Is Life: Dine'
Be'iina and the Black Mesa Weavers for Life and Land," by
Gary Paul Nabhan, pages 52-55. Available in hardcover and softcover
from Renewing the Countryside, Minneapolis, MN.
A New Plateau: Sustaining the Lands and Peoples of
Canyon Country
Produced by The
Center for Sustainable Environments at Northern Arizona University
in partnership with the Museum of Northern Arizona and Renewing
the Countryside, Inc.
July 18, 2005: On behalf of Black Mesa
Weavers for Life and Land, we want to publicly express our gratitude
and appreciation to the Arizona State Museum and to Martin Kim,
the director of the "Native Goods" museum shop and
his staff, for their support and encouragement in selling our
weavings in a fair trade nonprofit context since October 2004
until July 2005. The sales generated by their efforts have had
a major impact that has significantly benefited the individual
weavers and our organization, and helped expand awareness of
the importance of fair trade pricing to sustain the Dine' (Navajo)
weaving tradition that we hope will continue to grow and become
the norm for the sale of all American Indian arts. Ahe'hee'--Thank
you!
OCTOBER 2004 --May 2005:
Below is an excerpt of an announcement from the Gloria F.
Ross Center for Tapestry Studies, Arizona State Museum, University
of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721 "The GFR Center fosters
the creative practice and cultural study of tapestry, handwoven
worldwide and from ancient to modern times."
"EXHIBITION AND SALE [the exhibit ended, but our weavings
continued to be on sale in the "Native Goods" shop
through June 2005]
October 23, 2004,
through May 1, 2005
NAVAJO WEAVING AT ARIZONA STATE MUSEUM:
19th
Century Blankets / 20th Century Rugs / 21st Century Views
This exhibition showcases weaving from 150 years ago with contemporary
weaving of the last four decades. More than 60 textiles from
ASM's nationally recognized collection and the renowned Santa
Fe Collection fill two galleries organized by Barbara, Sierra
and Michael Ornelas and Ann Hedlund. Navajo weavers of today
share the significance of this rich and enduring tradition in
their own words. Co-sponsored by the Gloria F. Ross Center for
Tapestry Studies. Supported by Arizona Commission on the Arts,
National Endowment for the Arts, University of Arizona Foundation,
the Antique Tribal Art Dealers Association, the Arizona Blind
& Deaf Children's Foundation, the Richard C. & Susan
B. Ernst Foundation, Medicine Man
Gallery, the Stocker Foundation, and many generous individual
contributors. Members, Preview--Friday, October 22, 2004--6:30.
- 8 p.m.
Friday, October 22 - July 2005
NAVAJO
RUG SALE in NATIVE GOODS [Museum shop]: Black Mesa Weavers for
Life and Land Contemporary rugs
from the Black Mesa area were on sale at special prices in the
museum store," until July 2005.
Our thanks to everyone who came to the 2004 Cultural Survival Winter Bazaar and helped
make it a success for all! "The Cultural Survival Bazaar
brings together the work of dozens of skilled artisans and craftspeople
from around the world in one place. With each step you take,
the sights, smells, and sounds will transport you to a time and
place in another land. Our members and friends come back year
after year for this colorful event," said Pia Maybury-Lewis,
bazaar organizer and a co-founder of Cultural Survival with her
husband and Harvard anthropologist, David Maybury-Lewis. Over
50 vendors offered their wares for sale. A percentage of the
proceeds of each sale will support Cultural Survival's work with
indigenous cultures worldwide.
BLACK MESA WEAVERS FOR LIFE AND LAND WAS
THERE WITH WEAVINGS, STERLING SILVER JEWELRY, HANDMADE WEAVING
TOOLS, CHURRO WOOL, HANDSPUN YARN, AND MORE....
The 26th annual Cultural Survival Winter Bazaar was held
Dec. 3-4. We were there with:
-- weavings
-- carded Red Mesa churro wool (ready to spin)
-- handspun churro yarn
-- sterling silver and beaded jewelry
-- weaving combs, and more...
-- the sample "Black Mesa
Blanket"(tm) designed by the Dine' and being produced
of 100% churro weft together with Pendleton Woolen Mills in a
limited edition of 250, cosponsored by the Navajo Nation Museum
and the Museum of Northern Arizona: A historic first,
and we are accepting preorders.
-- and more...
Our thanks to everyone who came to our booth...
Cultural Survival Summer Bazaar 2005
...Under the big white tent.
Tiverton Four Corners, RI
We were there with weavings, handspun Navajo-Churro weaving
yarn, freshly sheared Churro wool, handmade weaving tools, jewelry,
and more..
Thanks to all who came!
At the James A. Michener Art Museum, Doylestown, PA, December
8, 2001. Photo © by Marianne Ham.
Dine' (Navajo) weavings are conceptual maps and abstract images
of correspondences among the many aspects of their worldview--cultural
and individual. They represent/recreate the cosmos, the geography
and landscape of Dine' Bike'yah (Navajoland), and the body, incorporating
many of the symbols and relationships seen in the ephemeral sandpaintings
created for ceremonial/healing purposes.
Many ideas for weavings come from the subtle and dramatically
striped rocks, buttes, and rock patterns that are constantly
changing in the varied light of the high mesa country of Dine'
Bike'yah.
Sandpainting
by Norris Nez and Henry Yazzie, Cultural Survival 30th anniversary
festival and bazaar, May 18-20, 2002.
Sky Sheets
Clothes of rain
cloths of wind
sky sheets of colors touched by waves
and turkey running among them
scattering seeds--
pictures from sand and flowers
strong as clouds
that are pressed as blankets around us
where we sit
in the last world.
(©8/28/01 Carol Snyder Halberstadt)
Storm pattern weaving by elder Maggie Biakeddy of Big Mountain
in its new home in California (MBM-232, 30 x 20 in.). It's on
the wall above a fine piece of Nambe Pueblo blackware pottery
by Lonnie Vigil and a carved stone turtle by Chippewa artist
Larry DeCoteau. (Photo by H. Mack Horton)
|
|
|
| |
MBMP-130. Faye Tso (SOLD) |
MBMP-134. Faye Tso (NFS) |
| |
Photo of Dine' elder in her cornfield, by Mark
Henle ©2000 The
Arizona Republic |
For the Elders
These people who walk in bodies of
corn
bones like stalks and tied hair tassels
knotted by wind;
these people like juniper roots
joined deep to clay
breathing;
with easeful feet walking
they hear beetle burrowing
in pollen rain and cloud-filled sand
to the quiet seeds
growing.
(©1/21/01 Carol Snyder Halberstadt)
|
We celebrated the 30th ANNIVERSARY
CULTURAL SURVIVAL SPRING BAZAAR, May 17, 18, 19, 2002, in the big tent on the green in Harvard Yard,
Cambridge, MA (between the Science Center and Sanders Theatre).
Four Dine' came from Black Mesa as guests of Cultural Survival
and Black Mesa Weavers for Life and Land: Norris & Lena Nez
and their daughter and son-in-law, Irene Nez and Henry Yazzie.
Norris Nez is a hataali (medicine man) and Lena Nez is
a superb weaver; Henry Yazzie is an apprentice hataali and
a fine silversmith. There were demonstrations of drypainting
(sandpainting), carding and spinning of churro wool, weaving,
traditional jewelry making, and song. Weavings shown here (and
more) were for sale as well as handmade silver and turquoise
jewelry.
Until Dece,ber 31, 2005, Black Mesa
Weavers for Life and Land was a Special
Project of Cultural Survival and we
were honored to have been part of this festive celebration of
Cultural Survival's 30th Anniversary. As of January 1, 2006, we
have incorporated as a nonprofit organization in Massachusetts.
This is me, selling weavings at the Cultural Survival Bazaar,
Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, April 28-30, 2000.
Student visitor watching Glenna Begay (weaving) and Esther Yazzie-Lewis
(interpreter) at the International Festival in Boston, MA, October
1999, under the auspices of Cultural Survival and Black Mesa
Weavers for Life and Land.
Write to: Black Mesa Weavers, P.O. Box 95204,
Newton, MA 02495
or email : carol@migrations.com
to place an order, or for more information. Or call toll-free
866-4-CHURRO (866-424-8776) Boston/Eastern Time 10 am to 7 pm.
Weavings, spindle, ceremonial basket and sash, plants, and wild
turkey feathers in my livingroom.
Go to Black Mesa
Weavers for Life and Land welcome page
Go to
Black Mesa Wool for Sale
Write to: Black Mesa Weavers for
Life and Land, P.O. Box 95204, Newton, MA 02495
or email : carol@migrations.com
to place an order, or for more information.Or call toll-free
866-4-CHURRO (866-424-8776) Boston/Eastern Standard Time 10 am
to 7 pm.
Copyright © 1998 -2013 Carol Snyder Halberstadt, Black Mesa
Weavers for Life and Land, Inc. All rights reserved. Black Mesa
Weavers for Life and Land , "Fair Trading from the Source,"
and "From Our Land to Your Home" are trademarks of
Black Mesa Weavers for Life and Land, Inc.
Return to Migrations home page.
