Joyce Ann Saufkie

Joyce Ann Saufkie lives in Shungopavi, Second Mesa, Arizona with her husband Morgan Saufkie of the Bear Clan. She is one of the finest Hopi coil basket weavers living today. Her baskets and plaques are made from yucca coiled around beargrass. The colors are all dyes derived from natural materials. The black colors are achieved by boiling the yucca with wild sunflower seeds. The red colors are boiled with mormon tea plant, the yellow is frozen in the snow during winter, the white is the result of wetting the yucca and bleaching it in the sun, and the green is the yucca as it is picked. Joyce is known for her full-figured Kachina designs and has won numerous awards for her very tight, beautiful designs.