Naha, Paqua

Paqua Naha was born into the Hopi-Tewa Kachina/Parrot Clan around 1890. Little is known of her childhood but she was producing pottery for the marketplace by the time she was 20 (about 1910).

For most of her career Paqua produced pottery using several different colors of native clay for the body: white, red and yellow, generally with black and red decorations. Her favorite designs seem to have been parrots, feathers, birds, the mythic bird-hanging-from-the-sky band, rain, water and Zuni style scrolls. Paqua is most famous for her white ware pieces, made with a process she developed and perfected only in the last three years of her life.

Paqua signed her pieces with a square-toed frog and was known as First Frogwoman (Paqua means frog in Hopi). Her daughter Joy Navasie was Second Frogwoman, signing with a frog with webbed toes. Paqua’s son Archie married Helen Naha who became famous as Featherwoman. Paqua’s other children, Eunice and Justin, were also potters and taught their children the traditional ways, too.

Among Paqua’s nieces were Patty Maho, Mamie Nahoodyce, Sadie Adams and Lena Charlie. Helen Shupla was a great niece.

Paqua passed on in 1955. In 1998, Dextra Quotskuyva said of her, “Paqua was a good artist. She made really hard pots to do, the ones that curve in and out. Only the best potter can make low seed jars. Paqua could do this… Paqua was a friendly person, like Nampeyo, especially toward the children… We used to go see her as children. We used to go up on the hill to play. She used to give us fry bread.”