Zuni Fetishes by the Leekya Family from Sunshine Studio

We created this page to honor the love that Challis had for the fetishes of the Zuni Master, Leekya Deyuse, and his descendents. This love continued to grow from the days of her earliest fetish purchases to the time of her death in 2003.

Leekya Deyuse's work was, for the most part, out of her reach, as it is for most collectors today. Leekya was the first Zuni fetish carver to gain nationwide recognition. He was one of the Zunis hired to work on the excavation of Hawikuh Pueblo in the 1920s, and saw first hand the work of his ancestors. He put this knowledge to good use. He was energetic and creative. His pieces ranged from simple carved turquoise leaves to fat bears to flowing birds to elegantly carved figurals. Early on, Leekya recognized that his tribal origin required that he not make accurate replicas of the work of the ancients. This was not a problem for him, as he knew that the market for his work was the trainloads of tourists passing through Gallup. These tired, weary travelers picked out happy animals from those that were offered to them. From the beginning, Leekya understood how to please the tourists. The other carvers tried but could not quite replicate the happy visage of Leekya's carvings, and never had the succes in selling in volume that was Leekya's.

Leekya did not make necklaces or jewelry except for a very small number in the 1920s. His expertise was in carving. At the low prices of the time, he had to produce art in volume. Joe Tanner speaks of purchasing milk pails full of necklace fetishes from Leekya for three dollars a piece. As was the custom of the time, Leekya's carvings were mounted in silverwork by Navajos. As best we know, Leekya did not do "Zuni inlay". He did some elegant inlaid birds. According to Lena Boone, her grandfather, Teddy Weahkie, was the first modern Zuni to commercialize Zuni Inlay. Ruth Kirk, wife of one of the Kirk Brothers who had flourishing general stores in Zuni, Gallup, and Manuelito at the time, has been credited with suggesting that the ladies would buy necklaces full of fetishes if he would make his birds small enough to string. Leekya agreed, and another flourishing art form was created. By the 1930s, most fetish necklaces were strung by the traders or the trader's wives. As other carvers caught on, the necklace stringers mixed in some of the fetishes carved by others to make what they thought was a pleasing piece. Many necklaces had strikingly carved flybirds as centerpieces. Leekya may have done a few of these. There was a sort of competition among the Zunis to see who could create the best flybirds. Leo Poblano was among those who carved the most elegant flybirds. The fact that the flybirds were carved by others does not cheapen the necklaces a bit. Figuring out who did the flybirds today without records or comparison pieces is a nearly fruitless discussion akin to trying to decide how many philosophers can fit on the head of a pin.

The funeral of Leekya Deyuse in 1966 led to the largest wake ever held in Zuni. Even those who were jealous of Leekya's success joined in. The wailing went on for three days and nights. When it was over, the most successful Zuni artist of all time was gone. His heritage still influences the village and its art. His family has a heavy burden to bear.

There is a downside to Leekya's success. His work is so sought after that replicas are being sold as the real thing. The Leekya name is so famous that everyone wants to say that his/her piece was done by Leekya. The urge to ascribe pieces to Leekya pervades the antique markets, the internet, some auctions, and even some museum collections. If you see a "Leekya" carving that is not happy, a necklace that is salted with a small number of his carvings, a bird by Sarah Leekya or Bernard or Fabian Homer being sold as a Leekya, a piece of "his" inlay, Leekya's "other style", or anything of his being sold at a bargain price, leave it right there. Someone else can have it. As P. T. Barnum said, "there is a sucker born every minute."

Leekya had three children, Alice (Homer), Francis, and Sarah. (We recommend that you consult Kent McManis' book, "Zuni Fetishes and Carvings" for detailed family tree charts.) Alice Homer and Francis Leekya (now deceased) developed styles of their own. Only Sarah is still carving. In the twilight of her life, Sarah carves only rarely. She strives to do pieces in the old style of her dad. Her birds still look a lot like Leekya's, her bears and other animals look a bit like the old fetishes pictured in Cushing's book. From time to time, Sunshine Studio has a few of her fetishes and a few of her fetish necklaces. Today, most Zuni carvers string their own necklaces and Sarah is no exception.

The grandchildren have set out on their own. Hayes Leekya carves great happy animals, frogs, livestock, and especially horses. He has done some human figurals, priests and matching old women. From time to time he does some innovative carvings like chickens on nests with eggs, and some birds with mother-of-pearl and turquoise inlaid wings. We especially like his happy horses and frogs.

Freddie Leekya's carvings sometimes tend to the funky. This is especially true of his livestock. He carves some elegant human figurals, frequently with an inlaid cane of office, and some rabbits dressed up as humans. If you do not have one of Freddie's human or frog figurals in your collection, you should.

Delvin Leekya tries to preserve the simple traditional fetishes in the style of his famous grandfather. I think he is more successful than Sarah in recreating the happy visage of Leekya. His earlier work did not get the recognition it deserved in the marketplace. Today, his creations are becoming much more interesting. His bears and wolves are humorous creatures, a bit like the fetishes in the Cushing book, but with a happier visage. Delvin has carved some birds and maidens making excellent use of the shape and form of natural shell. Some of his eagles look like his grandfather's. He also does some great birds with abalone and turquoise inlays on the wings and tails.

Bernard Homer, Jr., and his sister, Juana Homer, do numerous carvings in the style of Alice Homer. Bernard's eagles and frogs are particularly elegant. If they can be found, Bernard's eagles with beaks skyward carved from pink or green snail shell look a lot like Leekya's.

Fabian Homer's work is not seen very often. A few of his carvings with cowrie shell upper body and ricolite lower body can still be found. In the early 1980s, he carved some great eagles with beaks skyward in the style of Leekya.

We get Lance Deysee's work even less often. We occasionally find abalone, mother-of -pearl, and green snail creatures from Lance.

The great grandchildren are just starting to gain a reputation on their own. Enrike Leekya has done some great multi-stone inlay birds in delightful pinks and greens. His green frogs with long pink tongues are striking, but difficult to ship. Bryson Bobelu has done some fascinating hefty creatures including mountain lions with a raised paw. It will be interesting to see their styles develop as they mature.

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Zuni Fetishes by the Leekya Family from Sunshine Studio

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Leekya Deyuse

The Art of the Leekya Family