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June 2019 THE INDIAN TRADER
Fred Kabotie
Great Hopi Artist and All Around Good Guy By Tom Surface
An internationally celebrated artist, silversmith, illustrator, potter, author, curator, and educator, Fred Kabotie (1900-1986) was born into a highly traditional Hopi family at Second Mesa, Arizona. Born of the Bluebird Clan, his family was one of the founding families of the village of Hotevilla, where his family and clan members were committed to preserving the Hopi culture and traditions that were under constant attack from growing Western influences. Even as a young child, he drew images of Hopi Katsinas with bits of coal and earth pigments on rocks near his home. His given Hopi name was Naaqavo’ma, meaning “The sun coming up day after day.” His paternal grandfather gave him the nickname Qaavotay, meaning “Tomorrow.” However, his Anglo teacher at his first school mistakenly spelled his name “Kabotie”, which became his official name to the outside world. He was soon sent off to the Indian School in Santa Fe where his art teacher – against government policy - encouraged her students to embrace their culture in their paintings. (She was ultimately fired for her efforts.) Kabotie painted Katsinas because he missed home, and reportedly sold his first painting for 50 cents to the school’s carpentry teacher. As a teenager during his summer vacations, Kabotie learned from established Native artists and worked on archeological excavations. Soon after his graduation from Indian school, the talents of the 20-year-old Kabotie were in high demand. continued on page 12
Left: Kabotie in the early 1920s. Above: This mural at the Petrified Forest park was painted by Kabotie in 1947 and 1948.
