102 NATURE-BASED EXPRESSIVE ARTS THERAPY
preserved despite the occasional disapproval of the Catholic bishop
at the time or the reluctance of the tribal elders to have their sacred
images portrayed on the walls of a Catholic mission. In the arts, the
Zuni are noted carvers of fetishes, small representations of animals
and spiritual figures, and for a unique form of silver and turquoise
jewelry called pettipoint.The Dine (Navajo) people
The Navajo are the largest group of native people in the United States
(Pritzker 2000). They are artisans in many media including carving,
beadwork, silversmithing and especially weaving. At the historic
Hubbell Trading Post we watched a weaver sitting on her blanket
on the ground, weaving a wool rug, on her frame loom hung from a
tree. She explained that she intentionally creates a so-called mistake,
a spirit line within the rug so that spirits will not be trapped within it
but able to move freely as they wish.
The traditional home of the Navajo is the hogan, a round or multi-
sided dwelling with an opening facing to the east. Today, among
Navajo who live in more modern dwellings, a hogan will still be
maintained for ceremonial purposes. At the Navajo College in Tsaile,
our students and faculty were fed and housed in their hogan-shaped
dormitories and offered participation in classes and ceremonies to
help us to begin to learn about the Navajo ways. In our visits with
Navajo people we were also fortunate to develop ongoing friendships
with the medicine woman, Annie Khan “the flower who speaks in
a pollen way” (Perrone, Stockel and Krueger 1989, p.29) and with
Navajo guide, Andrew Henry. Andrew is also a silversmith, and his
wife is a bead worker. Each year we studied with Annie, and each
year Andrew led us into the sacred land of Canyon de Chelly, to his
tiny hogan, where we camped. As we hiked in the canyon we passed
Spider Rock, the mythical dwelling place of Spider Woman, one of
the most sacred Navajo female deities.