July 18, 2012
Artists, musicians, dancers, and cultural interpreters from the Navajo Nation will gather at the Museum of Northern Arizona’s 63rd Annual Navajo Festival on Saturday and Sunday, August 4 and 5 to share the Navajo way of being with over 4,000 Museum visitors.
The central philosophy in Diné life is hozho, or everything the Navajo people think of as good—harmony, beauty, blessedness, and balance. Navajo’s believe that creating art is one way to maintain this perfect state and more than 80 art booths with juried fine arts will fill the Museum’s historic grounds with arts that define their culture.
Visitors will hear the Navajo language, see pots of clay being formed, and watch weavers create detailed designs on traditional looms. There are also opportunities to meet silversmiths, folk carvers, and painters. They will enjoy the pageantry of Navajo social dances and delight in centuries-old musical traditions. And they will be able to sample traditional foods—red and green chili stew, roasted sweet corn, and the ever-favorite Navajo tacos with frybread.
Heritage Program Manager Anne Doyle says, “When we bring in the big tent, and the monsoon rains and cool air arrive, it’s time for Navajo Festival. This year’s festival highlights include Sihasin (See-ha-szin) with Janeda and Clayson Benally, James Bilagody, and Radmilla Cody. We will also be hosting Masaai visitors from Kenya, who will be here to learn more about the Navajo culture and our festival.”
MNA Director Dr. Robert Breunig adds, “With a population that has surpassed 250,000, the Navajo Nation is the largest tribe in the U.S., covering nearly 27,000 square miles in Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It borders Flagstaff, making it vitally important to the future of this region that we work to bring about cultural exchange among neighbors, Navajo and non-Navajos. And bringing about cultural exchange is what most excites all of us who work at the Museum.”
Heritage Insight Programs
“Traditional Navajo Exchange: Resiliency and Reciprocity” by Matthew Tafoya
Tafoya’s presentation looks how Navajos adapted to the environment using age old ideas and practices like sustainability, reciprocity, and responsible stewardship. He is a University of Arizona American Indian Studies graduate student working on his MA degree, with an emphasis on Navajo male material culture, traditional and modern Navajo economy, tribal government reform, and federal Indian law. Tafoya is also Vice President of the Navajo Studies Conference Board. He will be demonstrating arrow making and flintknapping throughout the weekend.
“Armed with Our Language, We Went to War: The Navajo Code Talkers” by Dr. Laura Tohe
During WWII, a small group of Navajo men enlisted in the Marines with a unique armor. They devised a code using the Diné (Navajo) language to pass secret information without the enemy ever deciphering or breaking the code. Tohe’s presentation discusses how the code was devised and used, and why the young Marines enlisted in the military, with with quotes from the Marines and personal photos from the Tohe family. Tohe’s books include No Parole Today, Making Friends with Water, and Sister Nations. Her most recent book Tseyi, Deep in the Rock won the Glyph award for Best Poetry and Best Book by Arizona Book Association. She is a Professor of English with Distinction at Arizona State University and her current book project is an oral history book on the Navajo Code Talkers.
In 6th World, a 15-minute science fiction film by Navajo film director Nanobah Becker, Navajo astronaut Tazbah Redhouse is a pilot on the first spaceship sent to colonize Mars. A mysterious dream the night before her departure indicates there may be more to her mission than she understands. Becker earned her MFA in directing from Columbia University in 2006. Her shorts Flat and Conversion (official selection, Sundance Film Festival) have screened around the world. Her screenplay “Into the Ring” got her a Sundance Institute-Ford Fellowship and she was awarded a Rockefeller Fellowship for her screenplay “Full,” which went on to the Tribeca All Access program. Becker’s producer credits include the award-winning Navajo language short Shimásání (Tribeca and Sundance film festivals). She is a native of Albuquerque and a graduate of Brown University.
Navajo Linguist Larry King is a cultural bright light who walks visitors along a path of history and legend, highlighting the resilience of the Navajo language and the way Navajos use humor to cope with hardship in their lives. He will also share humorous examples and fun stories about how new words and ideas are introduced into the Diné culture.
Performances Under the Big Tent
Navajo entertainer and singer James Bilagody will emcee the big tent activities throughout the day. Bilagody has worked as a deejay at KGHR Navajo Radio in Tuba City and KRCL in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Flagstaff brother and sister Jeneda and Clayson Benally of Blackfire fame have created their own unique brand of music with bass and drums. They’ve named their new group Sihasin, a Diné word that means to think with hope and assurance. They grew up protesting the environmental degradation and inhumane acts of cultural genocide against their traditional way of life. Their music reflects hope for equality, healthy and respectful communities, and social and environmental justice.
Many of the young Pollen Trail Dancers have grown up while dancing at MNA’s Navajo Festival. They will perform storytelling dances meant to be performed in the warm season. Group leader Brent Chase accompanies the dance troupe with his humor, insight, and Navajo flute playing. The Sash Belt or Weaving Dance tells the story of Spider Woman’s influence in weaving, the Basket Dance depicts the important role of baskets in Navajo life, and the Bow and Arrow Dance honors the warriors of old who have protected the Diné way of life.
Radmilla Cody will showcase songs from her newest CD, Shi Keyah–Songs for the People. Sung in the traditional style of the Diné, these new songs composed by Herman Cody honor Mother Earth, the homeland of the people, and the veterans who served our country, as well as a humorous look at life in Dinetah.
Additional Festival Activites
One-of-a-kind consigned art works from individual artists across the Navajo Nation are an important part of the Navajo Festivals, allowing artists who produce only a few items per year a chance to sell their work. Distinctive art pieces including pottery, paintings, weavings, and baskets will be on display and for sale in the consignment area.
Ethnobotany walks along the Rio de Flag Nature Trail will again be led by Diné educator Theresa Boone Schuler from Flagstaff. These very popular walking schoolrooms will reveal the traditional Navajo uses of regional native plants. Schuler gained her knowledge from her father, a noted Diné herbalist who urged her to pass on the knowledge of traditional healing plants by teaching about identification and usage.
At Creative Corner, outside in the Museum’s courtyard, kids and creative individuals will be able to make Navajo inspired take-home crafts. This year, visitors will learn how to make rattles, rug patterns, and woven book marks.
MNA’s Navajo Textiles Gallery is changed throughout the year from MNA’s Navajo Textiles Collection. The emphasis in this gallery is on the highly individualized expressions of this art form, allowing visitors to share in the weaver’s view of the world. Storm Pattern rugs are currently on display.
63rd Annual Navajo Festival Sponsors
The 2012 Navajo Festival of Arts and Culture is sponsored by the Flinn Foundation, Arizona Humanities Council, Arizona Commission on the Arts, City of Flagstaff, Flagstaff Cultural Partners, BBB Revenues, Main Street Catering, Palmeri Wine, and Fred Nackard Wholesale Beverage Company.
About MNA
Now celebrating its 84th year, the Museum of Northern Arizona is one of the great regional museums of our world, surrounded by tremendous geological, biological, and cultural resources in one of Earth’s most spectacular landscapes. With its long and illustrious history, MNA evokes the very spirit of the Colorado Plateau.
The Museum is located three miles north of historic downtown Flagstaff on Hwy 180. Festival hours are from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. both days. Festival admission is $10 adults, $9 seniors (65+), $7 students with student IDs, $6 American Indians (10+), and $5 youths (10–17). Admission is free for Museum members.
Become a member today in time to attend the Navajo Festival Members’ Preview, Arts Award Ceremony, and Silent Auction on Friday evening, August 3 before the festival. For more information, go to musnaz.org or call 928.774.5213.