The traditional Navajo Hogan is often the subject of Shonto Begay’s paintings. His most recent, Blue Hogan North, vibrates with its meaning for him. “The Hogan is a shelter, a home,” he says. “Its round shape is a model of the universe. The door always faces East to greet the morning sun.” Begay was born in a hogan in the northern part of the Navajo Nation and writes movingly of the experience in a collection of essays, Letter from Home.
Frost Awaken, oil, 30 x 24
Blue Hogan North, oil, 11 x 14”
An insomniac 9-year-old lies among his sleeping brothers and cousins conjuring in the dark. “I think of my cat (Maasi’), the guardian of the hearth,” Begay writes. “No respectful traditional Dineh’ would deprive a hoghaan of a Maasi’, the seer. The one who moseys, ganders, prances and even invades the lairs of the malevolent conspirators. The guardian of the hearth (gish), the fire poker of juniper limb. Maasi’ purrs somewhere. Maasi’ senses spirits, I am taught. I am happy Maasi’ is present somewhere on the fringes of blankets. Maasi’ is calm, why can’t I be calm?”
In Blue Hogan North, the dwelling is a warm shelter against the cold night. “In the cold winter, the lengthier time of the year,” he says, “there’s a sense of inner joy and learning.” Against the cold blue, Begay paints a shaft of orange light emanating from the Hogan and directing the eye to Maasi’ who patrols outside as the guardian of the hogan and all it holds. “The door is emitting light, all the experiences and the laughter of life in the hogan,” he explains. The knowledge and joy cultivated in the hogan is let out into the wider world.
Premonition, oil, 20 x 16”
Saturday Night Taunts, oil, 24 x 48”, Photography by Tom Alexander Photography.
Begay is a story teller and his paintings make them visible. He likens his brushstrokes to the syllables and lines of a chant connecting to the spirit world. “Each motion of the wrist or the hand expresses consciousness,” he says.
In Gifting of the Mountain he pays homage to mother mountain and her many gifts, including rain and moisture. As a boy he was a shepherd, spending hours in the vast landscape. The ceremonies he attended honored the land in songs and dance but the meaning was “almost out of my reach to understand,” he says. “That came later…slowly. It’s all alive and vibrating—buzzing with life.”
His most recent work will be shown at Medicine Man Gallery in Tucson, Arizona, beginning February 18. —
Mark Sublette Medicine Man Gallery
Opens February 18, 2022
6872 E. Sunrise Drive, Suite 130, Tucson, AZ 85750
(520) 722-7798, www.medicinemangallery.com
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