By providing a deeper insight into the Hopi, Navajo, and Hispanic cultures living on the Colorado Plateau, the Museum of Northern Arizona's three Heritage Program festivals continue to foster communication and the exchange of ideas between cultures by offering an in-depth mix of art, music, performances, and Heritage Insights presentations. Authentic expressions of cultural traditions and the voices of knowledgeable educators join together, creating a community of cultural understanding and a forum for dialogue. The next festival, the 74th Annual Hopi Festival of Arts and Culture, is Saturday June 30 and Sunday July 1. More than 50 artists travel from the Hopi mesas to share with visitors their lifeways and artistic creations. Visitors gain insight from carvers, painters, jewelers, potters, quilters, and basket and textile weavers against a backdrop of cultural presentations, storytelling, music, and dancing. Take a taste of piki or Hopi bread baked in outside ovens. Watch Hopi pottery being shaped, painted, and traditionally fired. Walk the Museum's Rio de Flag Nature Trail with a Hopi medicine woman. Take part in insightful discussions about the Hopi values of humility, cooperation, respect, balance, and earth stewardship
[Photo: Traditional Hopi dancers from the Lomayaoma Dance Group. Photo by Betsey Bruner].
