Featured Artist: Kurt Ovah
- MIP Author
- 12 hours ago
- 2 min read
Kurt’s visits offer more than an opportunity to see finished carvings. He speaks directly with museum visitors about the techniques he uses to create his Hopi kachina dolls, helping people understand the process, details, and decisions that go into the finished work.
During his Guest Artist appearance, visitors will have an opportunity to speak with Kurt about his work and see details that photographs cannot fully capture. The differences in form, color, posture, materials, and ornamentation reveal the many decisions involved in creating each figure.
Meet Kurt Ovah
Friday, August 14, 2026 Saturday, August 15, 2026 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. both days
OHC Kurt Ovah Hopi Earings Kurt Ovah Hopi Painting Kurt Ovah Hopi Selected artwork Kurt Ovah Hopi Kachina 1 Kurt Ovah Hopi Kachina 2b Kurt Ovah Hopi Etching Prints
Hopi Kachina Doll Carving. A Living Hopi Art Form
Kachina dolls, also written as katsina dolls, have a longstanding place within Hopi cultural life. Traditionally carved from cottonwood root, the figures represent katsinam and are presented within Hopi communities with wishes for growth and well-being. Artists also create carvings for sale, bringing their knowledge and individual approaches to an art form that continues to develop.
For museum visitors, meeting a Hopi artist provides important context. The carvings are not anonymous objects from the past. They are part of a living artistic practice carried forward by contemporary Hopi artists such as Kurt Ovah.
Visit the Museum of Indigenous People
147 N. Arizona Avenue, Prescott, Arizona 86301
Visitors are invited to meet Kurt, learn more about his carving, and support Indigenous art by purchasing directly from the artist. Hopi artist Kurt Ovah returns to the Museum of Indigenous People visitors can meet the artist, explore his Hopi kachina dolls up close, and purchase work directly from him.
Follow Ovah-Hill Creations on Instagram to see more of Kurt’s work.
