Burel Naha

Hopi

Photo of Burel Naha
Burel Naha

Burel is the son of Helen Naha, brother of Sylvia and Rainy Naha, grandson of Paqua Naha and nephew of Joy Navasie. He was born into the Hopi-Tewa Spider Clan in 1944. While he learned something about the traditional way of making pottery from his mother as he grew up, he earned a BA at Brigham Young University after high school and became a school teacher for many years. Then he returned to making pottery.

At first he stayed with the styles and designs he had learned from his mother. Then his daughter Cynthia came home from school one day with a digitized photo of a spider she had drawn. He was entranced. He decided to include the spider in his pottery designs and soon became the "Spider Man" of Hopi pottery.

Burel signs his work with the Long Hair Kachina symbol (his name) followed by the feather design of his mother.


Geometric design on a black and white seedpot
Black and white seedpot with geometric design
4.5 in H by 10.25 in Dia
Spider motif on a black and white seedpot
Black and white seedpot with spider motif
5 in H by 4.75 in Dia
Spider motif and geometric design on a polychrome seedpot
Polychrome seedpot with spider motif and geometric design
7.75 in H by 5 in Dia
Sun-face spider design on a polychrome white ware seed pot
Polychrome white ware seed pot decorated with a sun-face spider design
6 in H by 5.25 in Dia
Polychrome jar with a stylized migration pattern design
A stylized migration pattern design on a polychrome jar
5.75 in H by 5.25 in Dia
Photo of Burel Naha courtesy of AncientNations

Hopi Potters