Treasured Textiles
from the American Southwest:
The Durango Collection®
with
Philip Garaway
Dealer and Expert on Native American Art,
Los Angeles

This exhibition, now at the Fowler Museum at UCLA, features southwestern textiles created during the nineteenth century – a time of tremendous change as American occupation and the eventual coming of the railroad and trading posts influenced commerce and the exchange of ideas among various residents of territorial New Mexico and Arizona.  During this period, three great weaving traditions flourished in the distinctive landscapes of the American Southwest – Pueblo, Diné (Navajo), and Hispanic.  Weavers from all three groups produced exceptional works of art, influencing one another while developing their own characteristic styles.  Notable Diné (Navajo) works on display include magnificent early examples of the famous First and Second Phase “chief’s blankets.”  The oldest textile in the exhibition, dating to 1800, is a Hispanic serape showing the full-blown eye-dazzler patterning that later served as a source of inspiration for Diné (Navajo) weavers.  Philip Garaway will give TMA/SC members & guests an exclusive gallery tour of the exhibition.
        Philip Garaway has been buying and selling Native American Art for the past 40 years. He was first introduced to the Native American culture as a teenager in 1970, when his parents moved to the Monument Valley area of the Navajo Reservation in Northeastern Arizona to teach school. This gave him the opportunity to experience the ceremonial life of the Navajo and Pueblo people and learn first-hand about their arts, crafts and culture. He began his art business in Navajo textiles dealing directly with Navajo weavers and early traders on the Reservation.  In 1983 Philip opened the Native American Art Gallery in Venice, California, which deals exclusively in antique museum-quality Native American Art. He worked for 13 years developing a national and an international clientele.  Since then, he has lectured at numerous museums and institutions around the country.

Fowler Museum, UCLA

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