  
  |
|
|
|
|
| A LATE CLASSIC THIRD PHASE CHIEF'S BLANKET, NAVAJO, CIRCA 1880 |
 Navajo blanket collectors often engage in lengthy discussions about the yarns and the dyes used in Navajo blankets. Their presumption is simple: yarns and dyes determine the date of a blanket, and an earlier date is better than a later date. What such discussion overlook is the fact that the best Navajo weavers were artists, and a good artist tends to develop into a better artist over the course of a lifetime. Drama and emotion – not yarns and dyes – determine whether or not a Navajo blanket is a great work of art.
The Classic Period of Navajo weaving (1820 – 1865) is considered by most collectors to be the high point of the Navajo blanket as an art form. The Late Classic Period (1865 – 1880) is considered to be a period of lesser accomplishments. However, the Navajo women who were active weavers on December 31, 1865, did not lose their skills or their talents on the morning of January 1, 1866. The 1860s and 1870s were times of great political and economic difficulty for the Navajo people, but the difficulties they encountered did not prevent Navajo weavers from producing great blankets during that period.
In this impressive third phase chief's blanket, the red yarn create an immediate emotional response, but it is the two shades of blue that create this blanket's drama. The use of more than one shade of blue is typical of Navajo blankets woven after 1856, and it is one many artistic and technical innovations that make the Late Classic Period a fascinating chapter in the history of the Navajo blanket. – Joshua Baer |
| |
|
|
| |
|
©1998-2003 Silverman Museum Collection™ - All Rights Reserved
P.O. Box 2610 | Santa Fe, New Mexico 87504-2610 USA
Phone: 505.982.6722 or 800.501.6722 | Fax: 505.982.6755
E-mail: collect@silvermanmuseum.com
Site by Global Cyber Access
Site Powered by Intrcomm Technology's SMC |
|
