Sunglasses Basket (1999)

Tsé Bii’ndzisgai (Monument Valley), near where many contemporary basket weavers live, is a popular tourist destination. In Sunglasses, Peggy Black has created a stylized vision of a Southwest tourist, her light hair pulled up in a ponytail and her gaze concealed by sunglasses. She based her basket on a design by Diné (Navajo) graphic artist Damian Jim. This whimsical and humorous basket reflects the Diné idea of balance and a subtle nod to the four directions in the grouping of the faces in four pairs. It’s also a reminder that the sun is a powerful presence in Dinétah (the Diné homeland).