Monday, September 3, 2012

Native American Symbolism - the diamond

 
Perhaps two of the earliest design elements to be utilized by Navajo weavers are the diamond and the triangle. These elements were incorporated into old wearing blankets and continue in the modern day Navajo rugs. Again, we cannot be too sure of some of the meanings, but many Navajo grandmothers will tell you that the diamond is a symbol of the Dinétah or Navajo homeland with its four sacred corners that are marked by the four sacred mountains.
The Navajo are an indigenous people from the American Southwest. They call themselves "Dine'", which means 'people' in the Navajo language. The first Navajos settled in the Southwest in the early 16th Century. Today, the Navajo Nation stretches across Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah, covering over 27,000 square miles.
 
Navajo people tell us they learned to weave from Spider Woman and that the first loom was of sky and earth cords, with weaving tools of sunlight, lightning, white shell, and crystal. Anthropologists speculate Navajos learned to weave from Pueblo people by 1650. There is little doubt Pueblo weaving was already influenced by the Spanish by the time they shared their weaving skills with Navajo people. Spanish influence includes the substitution of wool for cotton, the introduction of indigo (blue) dye, and simple stripe patterning.
I chose the diamond pattern for my logo to represent my "weaving" of the culture of the Southwest into my art.


No comments: