Hopi woman tackles task of preserving kachinas

Submitted by Debra Utacia Krol, marketing communications manager for Heard Museum West. Visit the museum at www.heard.org.

When she was 19, Debra Drye took her future in her hands.

"One day, I asked my grandfather what would happen to our community when there's no more kachina carvers.

"Without a word, he handed me a knife."

Kachina carvers are traditionally men. Nonetheless, Drye is perhaps the only Hopi woman to reverse long-standing tribal traditions, tackling the challenge of preserving her culture by carving kachina dolls.

The creations of cottonwood, pigment and consummate skill are nothing less than manifestations of the holy people who watch over the Hopi people.

In accepting the task of carrying on the tradition of kachina carving, Drye, a native of Old Oraibi, one of the most traditional Hopi villages, also accepted major changes in her own life.

"My grandfather sent me to a medicine man, who said I had to do certain things before I could carve," said Drye, who now lives in the West Valley. Among those was giving up alcohol.

The medicine man also gave Drye a special gift: some cottonwood roots that he had blessed. The root was very sweet and not very porous, a perfect combination for the miniature kachinas that are Drye's trademark.

"I've always felt like my carving was blessed since I started with wood from a medicine man," Drye said. "My kachinas have carried the purpose of Oraibi, which is the prayer for peace."

Today, Drye guides her own family's forays into art.

"The kids are into drawing," Drye said of her 15-year-old nephew and two nieces, ages 8 and 9.

Drye, 55, also has a vision of creating a Native arts and cultures institute for tribal children.

"I'd like to see a school built on the grounds of the old Phoenix Indian School," she said. "I believe part of my vision is to help create an institution where young artists can feel free to express a message that's empowering them and the community from which they come."

She feels keenly the need to educate future generations of Indian children in the traditions of spirituality, art and culture to help mitigate abusive childhood experiences of those who attended Indian boarding schools.

"There needs to be a sense of forgiveness so we can stop carrying this heavy burden of bitterness," Drye said. "We can never forget what happened there, but we can correct the years of injustice that occurred on Indian School Road."

Drye also advocates renaming the street Indian Art School Road.