"Niman Kachina Dancers"
Oil painting by Carl Oscar Borg (1879-1947), 1917
Collected by Phoebe A. Hearst, 1918.
17-194
Carl Oscar Borg, painter of Southwestern Indians and landscapes, was one of the many artists whose careers were formed by the patronage of Phoebe Hearst. Upon meeting the Swedish-born painter in 1909, she purchased several of his paintings, and between 1910 and 1914, she funded his tour of the great cities, museums, and archaeological sites of Europe and North Africa. Over the next several years he spent extended periods living at her Pleasanton estate. Until her death, Borg maintained a close relationship with Phoebe Hearst, whom he called his "little mother." In the summer of 1916, Hearst joined the Smithsonian Institution in sending Borg to the Hopi and Navajo reservations. This painting was one of five of Borg's Southwestern scenes that she donated to the museum, where they hung over the display cases. The Niman kachina dance, held in late July, is the last of the kachina events of the Hopi ceremonial year. After this farewell ceremony the kachina spirits return to their homes, where they will remain for six months, ensuring rain for Hopi crops.
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