* Mother of theKachinas - HahaiWuhtiKatsina - Lot 1

* Mother of theKachinas - HahaiWuhtiKatsina Hopi, Arizona Cottonwood root, pigments, feathers H. 19 cm (without base and feathers) Circa 1900-1920 Provenance : - Collection Galerie Flak, Paris - Collection Léo Scheer & Nathalie Rheims, acquired from previous owners in 1999 This statuette is the very first Kachina to enter the Léo Scheer and Nathalie Rheims collection. As Angie David writes in her introductory text (pages 6 and 7), it is this Kachina coup de foudre "with its unusual, almost Japanese grace, giving rise to dreams of a totally unheard-of aesthetic arc being drawn from Arizona to Northern Asia, via Siberia." This is a beautiful and ancient figure of the Hahai-i Wuhti spirit. This female figure is considered by the Hopi to be the Mother of the Kachina Spirits. She is also sometimes called "she who brings (or pours) water". During her ritual appearances, Hahai-i Wuhti constantly speaks to tell people how to behave and what they may have done wrong. Hahai-i Wuhti accompanies Kachina chiefs, notably during the Salako and Water Serpent dances. She is also the Mother of the Nataska, the Ogres (see descriptions of lots 16 and 33 in this collection). In terms of sculpture, this touching feminine Kachina is a typical example of works produced during the first quarter of the twentieth century.