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Excerpted from exhibit brochure forward written by Alyssa Travis, Associate Curator of the Tucson Desert Art Museum.
"Besides a handful of outstanding contemporary weavings by master weavers Elsie Bia, Selena Yazzi, Cecelia Nes, and GHardy, the works in this collection were woven between the 1870s and 1940s. In many ways, these works were ahead of their time and resemble the works of color field painters, op artists, hard-edge painters, and to a lesser extent, the minimalists of the the mid-1900s. For instance, many of the pieces in this exhibition resemble color field paintings by artists like Kenneth Noland, Frank Stella, Mark Rothko, and Morris Louis. In these works, large areas of color become the subject of the work rather than any objective context. As another example, many of the exhibition's serapes and transitional blankets wit their Mexican Saltillo-style serrated diamonds and vibrant colored yarns create eye-popping effects worthy of the psychedelic-inspired 1960s Op Art movement."
Modern Art Navajo Textiles Exhibit 2017

Book: Navajo Textiles As Modern Art
Celebrating the imagination of the Navajo Weaving Artist. Our goal for this exhibition is to present a wide variety of Navajo textiles which represent many facets of Modern Art, from minimalism to multidimensional design concerts. There is always the question of what came first? Whatever the theory - The Navajo Weaver is part of the mix and was...

Navajo Saddle Blanket -Single : Historic : PC 123 : 34″ x 28″
$ 3,000.00
Single Navajo Saddle Blanket was woven in 1920 using hand carded, hand spun and hand dyed Lincoln wool with aniline dyes and a natural tan field. It has a classic fretwork/Teec Nos Pos border, with a warp fringe finish which is typically seen on earlier weavings. This beautiful piece was featured in the Navajo Textiles as Modern Art exhibit hel...
HOLD Saddle Blanket - Single Sunday Navajo Weaving : Historic : PC 119 : 25" x 25"
Saddle Blanket

HOLD Saddle Blanket - Single Sunday Navajo Weaving : Historic : PC 119 : 25" x 25"
$ 15,000.00
Fancy Single Navajo Saddle Blanket. Currently on loan to the Booth Western Art Museum in Cartersville GA until 2023. Some saddle blankets were woven to be used only on special occasions. They were known as Sunday Saddle Blankets, and this one is extra fancy. Used for special occasions to throw over the saddle, not under it. The weaver of th...

Two Grey Hills - Toadlena Navajo Weaving: Historic : PC 70 : 49″ x 80″
$ 7,800.00
When you read Toadlena and Two Grey Hills in the same description you know you're looking at a quality weaving. This piece was extremely fine woven by one of the Master weavers of the time. It's in excellent condition in quality and condition. The weaver used beautiful all natural Churro wool colors for this piece. The rich brown/gray backgr...

SOLD - Chinle Navajo Rug : Historic Runner : PC 47 : 3'7" x 9'1"
This lovely Arts and Crafts Navajo runner has an unusual repeating geometric design. Tightly woven with shades of brown, gold, cream and red. The tie down points(sew points) are still visible. Runners are hard to weave and this one is no exception especially woven under the more primitive times of the 1920s. Hand carded, hand spun, hand dyed...

Chee Dodge - Crystal Pictorial Navajo Rug : Historic : PC 276 : 48" x 75"
$ 8,000.00
This pristine Hero Twin Pictorial is vibrant and unusual. Attached with a lead seal is the original certificate of authenticity. This paper tag was attached to all Navajo rugs beginning in 1937. It stated for the consumer that the product was a Navajo all-wool woven fabrics and was used by the government as a certificate of genuineness. We...

Crystal Hero Twin Navajo Rug Weaving : Historic : GHT 536 : 54" x 108"
$ 12,000.00
Crystal Hero Twin Storm Pattern Navajo Rug. Hand-carded, hand-spun, and hand-dyed native wool. This beautiful piece was featured in the Navajo Textiles as Modern Art exhibit held at Nizhoni Ranch Gallery March 11 - June 30 2017. You can find this weaving in the catalog Navajo Textiles As Modern Art on page 16. Style Crystal Weaver Unknown...

HOLD - Pictorial - Great Star Native American Rug : Antique : PC 81 : 62" x 83"
Germantown Pictorial Navajo rug. This is a Germantown Great Star Pictorial weaving. It is incredibly rare and is from Steve's personal collection. Steve said, "I have never seen another Navajo weaving like it. It is in mint condition and has never been restored, to my knowledge. " He collected it in the early 1990s. The Great Star Ceremony is...
Serape - Rio Grande Saltillo Style : Native American Textile: Antique : PC 35 : 53" x 95" : $75,000
Serape

Serape - Rio Grande Saltillo Style : Native American Textile: Antique : PC 35 : 53" x 95" : $75,000
Serape Navajo blanket. This incredibly detailed Serape was woven in the early 1880s by a master who had been influenced by the Rio Grande - Saltillo style using 4-ply Germantown yarn. The bold central pattern of concentric diamonds woven smaller and smaller by delicate saw-toothed outlined rows, come to focus on a delicate Spiderwoman Cross wit...

Germantown Serape Navajo Weaving : Historic : GHT 783 : 57" x 74"
$ 12,500.00
Likely woven in the 1900's on an outdoors upright loom, this gorgeous Germantown serape was tightly woven. 4-ply Germantown yarns were used to create this intense piece of woven art. One can see the Hispanic and Navajo influence in the piece. This beautiful piece was featured in the Navajo Textiles as Modern Art exhibit held at Nizhoni Ranch Gal...

Crystal Optical Navajo Rug Weaving : Historic : PC 45 : 40" x 65"
$ 4,800.00
Crystal Optical Navajo rug. This is a favorite from our personal collection! Woven in the 1900s this unusual Crystal-style Optical piece has a beautiful hand-carded, hand-spun Merino wool natural light brown "background" of four hooks. A central band showcases the weaving comb/fork used by Navajo weavers in black and red. One of the most cha...
SOLD Chinle / Nazlini Runner : Historic : GHT 2116 : 4'8" x 8'4" : 56″ x 100″
All of the colors in the borders are reflected in the diamond detailing a the points of each of the design points in the patterns of the piece, all which are floating gently on a cream background. This lovely runner was woven in the 1940s by a master weaver using hand-carded, hand-spun, and hand-dyed native wool. This beautiful piece was featur...

SOLD - Teec Nos Pos Navajo Weaving : Historic : GHT 2186 : 48″ x 77″
Teec Nos Pos Navajo rug. Woven in the 1930s using Lincoln wool, this Teec Nos Pos piece has a gorgeous black and red "T" border. Inside we have a gorgeous gray background which sets off the handsome large stylized arrow design. The Redhouse clan were known to weave with this pattern and was most likely a design that only their clan used. Wo...

Germantown Optical Navajo Weaving : Historic : GHT 2203 : 49 1/2″ x 68″
$ 21,500.00
Germantown Navajo Rug. Germantown yarn (from Germantown Pennsylvania area) was first introduced to the Navajo at Bosque Redondo, so the women would have some material to weave their highly prized rugs. The Navajo Indians were allowed to return to their reservation (1868), where the weavers continued to use the popular Germantown yarns because t...

SOLD Optical Navajo Weaving : Historic : GHT 2202 : 41″ x 63″
The beautiful brown in this weaving is derived from Mountain Mahogany root. It's an antique optical design woven in the Teec Nos Pos area and was created with Lincoln wool. The optical design keeps you looking and trying to decide if the points are going up or down. This beautiful piece was featured in the Navajo Textiles as Modern Art exhibit...
Serape : Late Classic : Historic : GHT 1923 : 54″ x 71″
$ 18,000.00
Serape Navajo Blanket. Late Classic blanket from the 1880s. The bright red background showcases the indigo blue, green and cream. The negative space creates a spider design overall as a tribute to Spiderwoman. It's a fascinating piece of art! This piece was brought to life with Merino wool and is very finely woven. This beautiful piece was...

Manta : Navajo Weaving : Jalucie Marianito : Churro 463 : 45" X 61"
$ 7,500.00
This is one of her masterpieces. This woman's manta was featured in the 2006 "The Next Phase : Navajo Weaving in the 21st Century from the Getzwiller Collection Exhibit at the Desert Caballeros Museum in Wickenburg. Woven with native Churro wool, Jalucie used all natural dyes to achieve the coloring in this piece. Indigo blue, cochineal red, an...