Susan Kliewer - Hopi Butterfly Girl

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"The Butterfly Dance is performed in late summer when butterflies are free and many. This social dance is performed by unmarried Hopi girls. Although a social dance, it is done with such spirit that, it is said, the dancer becomes the butterfly.

The designs on the tableta (head piece) are all symbolic: the top dashes representing stars in the sky; the shapes above, representing clouds and the sky world.

As a young girl, my Hopi friend Kate was a butterfly dancer in her village of Moenkopi. She was very helpful in making sure all the details were correct in the dress and tableta. To this day, we are often invited to see the dances and feel very privileged to attend." - Susan Kliewer