desert calendar - Desert Magazine of the Southwest

Ever since he was a small boy, Hoke Denetsosie has wanted to paint pictures depicting
the colorful way of life of his people, the Navajo. Now Hoke's work is
gaining wide recognition, and he looks forward to the time when he can spend all
working hours at his drawing board.
Hoke Denetsosie...Navajo Artist
Many travelers to the South-
west have bought cartoon post-
cards signed "Hoke Denetsosie."
The name, as well as the draw-
ing style, intrigued Edgar Ellin-
ger, Jr., and he resolved to learn
more about this Navajo cartoon-
ist. Here is the story of an Indian
artist whose serious paintings
are among the best examples oi
native American art.
By EDGAR ELLINGER, JR.
Photographs by the author
7HE INTRIGUING signature,
Hoke Denetsosie (Hoak Dinet-so'-sey),
appears at the bottom
of many cartoon postcards sold
throughout the Southwest. The cartoons,
skilfully drawn, illustrate gag
situations relating to the West. Seeing
one, my curiosity was aroused, both
by the fascinating name of the artist
and his interesting style—I wanted to
learn more about the man behind this
pen.
Hearing that Hoke was living in
Kanab, Utah, I wrote to him asking
for an interview. Some time elapsed
without an answer, so I sent a letter
to the Kanab postmaster and asked
him if he knew where I might reach
the artist. Two days later a reply came
from the postmaster: Hoke was in
town and an interview could be arranged.
The fact that he was available
was all that was necessary. I packed
the jeep and headed for Utah with the
feeling that there must be something
more behind the artist than his facile
ability to knock out cartoons.
I finally located Hoke not far from
Kanab in the small town of Fredonia,
Arizona. He was plastering a house
for a friend and was living there while
the work was in progress. He was
frankly surprised at my desire to write
a story about him, although he was
12 DESERT MAGAZINE