The Niman dance is held in July at most Hopi villages and marks the departure of the kachinas from the mesas. This Hemis Kachina is generally selected and the main dancer for the event.

The curvilinear elements inside the border of the tile on three sides give the image energy, the figure upward energy, and keep the overall design from being static. The three small areas of red color form a triangle that draws the viewer’s eye to the center of the image and integrate its parts.

When I first saw this (hot) tile in Jake’s oven, he pointed out that a corner had broken, hence the reduced price. It’s clear from the painting that the lower left corner had broken before the tile was painted and Jake painted the border over this break so as to keep the design intact. Like tile 2010-01, the tile is unsigned because it was intended as a thrown by a woman participant as a gift to the crowd at a basket dance (O’waqolt) held 11/21/10.

Purchase History:
Also like 2010-01, this tile was purchased on 11/19/09, was fired later that day, and was lost until found in Jake’s home two months later. November 2009 was the last time I met Jake; he died tragically young on 6/14/11.