STYLE : STYLEMAKER : Blanket Statement
Ever since the first machine-woven wool blankets arrived at Pueblo and Navajo Indian trading posts nearly 100 years ago, they’ve been a staple of tribal life, exchanged as gifts or worn proudly at ceremonial dances. But while the boldly patterned blankets have always drawn their inspiration from rich Indian hand-weaving traditions, they were never designed by Native Americans. Never, that is, until now. Pendleton Woolen Mills, whose trade blankets are prized throughout the Southwest, has unveiled a line of six blankets designed by Hopi weaver Ramona Sakiestewa of Santa Fe, N.M.
The collaboration was Sakiestewa’s idea. Two years ago, she approached Ray Dewey, owner of Santa Fe Pendleton, offering to design a blanket exclusively for his store. Dewey suggested a series to be produced by Pendleton and named for the trails that served as conduits of commerce in the old Southwest. The first blanket, the Santa Fe Trail, is a classic. Its bands of rust, gold and turquoise set against a desert-tan background recall the striping used by Pueblo, Navajo and Hispanic weavers in the late 19th Century. A diamond alludes to Santa Fe Pendleton’s logo. “I wanted a really elegant blanket,” Sakiestewa says, “something you would have seen at the turn of the century in Santa Fe.”
A limited edition of 1,000 blankets, available by mail-order from Santa Fe Pendleton (1-800-444-WOOL) at $280 apiece, features a smooth, unnapped finish and Ultrasuede binding. The $200 open edition of the blanket, available next spring in selected stores around the country (including Southern California), has a napped finish and wool felt binding. Designs for the Chihuahua Trail, the Chaco Trail, the Iron Horse Trail, the Hopi Trail and the Navajo Trail will be issued later.
The Pendleton project is a new venture for the 43-year-old Sakiestewa, whose blankets, rugs and tapestries hang in museums and private collections. She grew up in Albuquerque and on the Hopi reservation in Arizona, but when she took up weaving on a hand loom 20 years ago, it was strictly for fun. Weaving became her bread and butter after she quit a state arts job in 1981.
Sakiestewa shares her snug studio with two weavers who execute many of her designs, which range from vivid Southwestern-style patterns to subtly shaded, abstract work. But even at her most postmodern, Sakiestewa borrows liberally from her favorite era in Pueblo and Navajo weaving--the period from the 1840s until 1900. “I really like the stripes,” she says. “There is something seductive about them.”
