Evalena Henry
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Evalena Henry (born February 5, 1939) is a San Carlos Apache basket weaver and teacher from Arizona. In 2001, she was awarded a National Endowment of the Arts fellowship for her craftsmanship.
Early life
Evalena Henry was born a member of the San Carlos Apache in Peridot, Arizona.[1][2] The daughter of Robert and Cecilia Henry, she first learned her tribe's basket weaving traditions from her mother, Cecilia Henry, a master of the craft.[3] Cecilia Henry began making baskets in the 1950s, to prevent the traditions of the tribe from dying out.[1] Cecilia Henry taught her basketry skills to her daughters, Celina, Viola, Joann and Evalena, who would all become noted weavers.[2][4]
Evalena Henry first attended Rice School, on the San Carlos Reservation, later attending the Globe School in Globe, Arizona. As a girl, she worked hard to learn how to split willow to make baskets, the skill did not come naturally to her.[3]
Sunrise baskets
In the 1970s, Evalena began making traditional baskets for the Apache's Sunrise Dance ceremony, a traditional coming of age rite for girls in the tribe.[5][6] Evalena became known for her intricate designs for these ceremonial burden baskets, many of which utilize her mother's unique weave patterns.[1][2][7]
Henry uses different colored willow and cottonwood branches from the forests found in Arizona's White Mountain Reservation for her basketry.[1] She uses the different colored fibers to create unique motifs on her baskets, including cactuses, horses, deer and crown dancers.[8] Henry is also known for making tus baskets, baskets that are used to traditionally carry water. Henry uses pinon pitch to ensure her baskets are watertight.[3]
Recognition
Henry has taught basketry at the Taos Art Institute and at the Camp Verde reservation to ensure that her skills are not lost.[1] In 2001, she was named a fellow by the National Endowment of the Arts. For her fellowship in Washington, DC, she would take her first trip by airplane.[1]
In 2005, she received an Eric and Barbara Dobkin Fellowship from the School for Advanced Research.[8]
In 2006, she returned to Washington to demonstrate her basket weaving skills at the Smithsonian Folklife festival.[3]
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Evalena Henry". www.arts.gov. Retrieved 2025-03-13.
- 1 2 3 Dittemore, Diane (2024-01-16). Woven from the Center: Native Basketry in the Southwest. University of Arizona Press. pp. 155–161. ISBN 978-0-8165-5263-4.
- 1 2 3 4 Congdon, Kristin G.; Hallmark, Kara Kelley (2012-03-19). American Folk Art: A Regional Reference [2 volumes]. Bloomsbury Publishing USA. pp. 502–506. ISBN 978-0-313-34937-9.
- ↑ Dalrymple, Larry (2000). Indian Basketmakers of the Southwest: The Living Art and Fine Tradition. Museum of New Mexico Press. ISBN 978-0-89013-338-5.
- ↑ Bergey, Barry (2018-03-05). Folk Masters: A Portrait of America. Indiana University Press. p. 114. ISBN 978-0-253-03233-1.
- ↑ "Evalena Henry – Masters of Traditional Arts". www.mastersoftraditionalarts.org. Retrieved 2025-03-13.
- ↑ Wayland, Virginia; Wayland, Harold; Ferg, Alan (2006). Playing Cards of the Apaches: A Study in Cultural Adaptation. Screenfold Press. p. 27. ISBN 978-0-9787746-0-8.
- 1 2 "Evalena Henry | School for Advanced Research". Retrieved 2025-03-13.
External links
- Evalena Henry at the National Endowment of the Arts