Over 100 Native American Artists to Highlight 25th Litchfield Park Native American Fine Arts Festival

More than 100 Native American artists from Arizona, New Mexico, California, Colorado and Utah offering a highly diverse range of artwork, jewelry, cultural art and musical instruments will fill the streets of Litchfield Park for The Gathering, the 25th anniversary of the Litchfield Park Native American Fine Arts Festival, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 14 and Sunday, Jan. 15.

The festival is free in celebration of its silver anniversary. In the tradition of a street festival, The Gathering will move to the center of town where artist booths will line Old Litchfield Road south of Wigwam Blvd as well as across the lawn of the Litchfield Park Library, 101 W. Wigwam Blvd., and on the nearby Gazebo lawn.

The invitation-only festival features artists and artisans representing numerous tribal affiliations through a balance of art forms including traditional and contemporary beadwork, clothing, jewelry, paintings and prints, pottery, sculptures and weaving. Tribes represented include Diné (Navajo), Eastern Band Cherokee, Echota Cherokee, Euchee/Muscogee/Choctaw, Hopi, Jemez Pueblo, Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwa, Laguna Pueblo, Pascua Yaqui, Pueblo of Acoma, Pueblo of Zuni, Santo Domingo Pueblo/Choctaw, Northern Arapahoe/Cheyenne, Oklahoma Choctaw, Saginaw Chippewah of Michigan, Santa Clara Pueblo, Seminole/Creek, Shoshone and Yaqui of Southern Arizona.

Miss Indian Arizona, Shaandiin Parish of the Navajo Tribe, will make a special appearance at The Gathering at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 14.

The R. Carlos Nakai Quartet, which also features saxophonist and keyboardist AmoChip Dabney, bassist Johnny Walker and drummer Will Clipman, will perform in a special pre-Festival concert at 7 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 13 at The Wigwam immediately following a display of winning pieces from the Festival's juried art competition. Tickets to the reception and concert are $25 and are available through www.eventbrite.com.

The weekend entertainment schedule includes: Saturday Mainstage - Gabe Ayala (10 a.m.), R. Carlos Nakai Quartet (12 p.m.), Moontee Sinquah and Sons (2 p.m.), Mac Lopez (3:30 p.m.), Adrian Wall (4:15 p.m.); Sunday Mainstage - Gaby Ayala (10 a.m.), Moontee Sinquah and Sons (12 p.m.), Mac Lopez (2 p.m.), Moontee Sinquah and Sons (3:30 p.m.) and Adrian Wall (4:15 p.m.)

Artwork by renowned artist Amado Peña, who will be at the Festival, has been selected as the poster art for The Gathering. "Mestizo Series: Tesoros del Pueblo," defined by Peña's classic use of bold color and form and dynamic composition, features five Native American women seated near a Santa Fe-style mission, one weaving a blanket and the others either displaying or painting traditional pottery.

The festival is presented by the City of Litchfield Park with funding, in part, from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Arizona Commission on the Arts and the Arizona Office of Tourism. Additional sponsors include Sun Health La Loma Village and The Wigwam as well as cooperation from the Heard Museum and the West Valley Arts Council.

For more information, visit www.litchfieldparkgathering.com.

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