# Beatien Yazz > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Beatien_Yazz > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Beatien_Yazz.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beatien_Yazz > Source revision: 1355151940 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) {{Short description|Native American painter (1928–2022)}} {{Infobox artist | name = Jimmy Toddy | image = | caption = | native_name = Beatien Yazz | native_name_lang = nv | birth_name = Hoska Ye Ta Das Woot | birth_date = {{Birth date|1929|05|29}} | birth_place = near [Wide Ruins, Arizona](/source/Wide_Ruins%2C_Arizona), U.S. | death_date = {{Death date and age|2021|06|20|1929|05|29}} | death_place = | citizenship = [Navajo Nation](/source/Navajo_Nation) and American | alma_mater = [Santa Fe Indian School](/source/Santa_Fe_Indian_School) | style = Flatstyle | movement = [Studio school](/source/Studio_school) | spouse = | partner = | children = | parents = | father = | mother = | relatives = | family = | awards = | elected = | patrons = | memorials = | website = }} '''Beatien Yazz''' (May 29, 1929 – June 20, 2021), also called '''Jimmy Toddy,''' was a [Navajo](/source/Navajo) American painter and teacher born near [Wide Ruins, Arizona](/source/Wide_Ruins%2C_Arizona). He exhibited his work around the world{{Cite book |last=King |first=Jeanne Snodgrass |url=http://archive.org/details/americanindianpa00king|title=American Indian painters; a biographical directory|date=1968|publisher=New York : Museum of the American Indian, Heye Foundation|others=Smithsonian Libraries|pages=14–15}} and is known for his paintings of animals and people and for his children's book illustrations. == Early life == '''Hoska Ye Ta Das Woot''' was born to Joe and Desbah Toddy on the [Navajo Reservation](/source/Navajo_Reservation) near Wide Ruins, Arizona.{{cite web |last1=White |first1=Cody |title=Considerable Talent and Great Promise: the Early Years of Navajo Artist Beatien Yazz |url=https://text-message.blogs.archives.gov/2017/03/21/considerable-talent-and-great-promise-the-early-years-of-navajo-artist-beatien-yazz/ |website=The Text Message |publisher=National Archives |access-date=26 March 2024 |date=21 March 2017}}{{Cite web|title=Beatien Yazz|url=https://www.blueherongallery.net/beatien-yazz/|access-date=2021-10-14|website=Blue Heron Gallery|language=en-US}} He often went by his English-language name Jimmy Toddy, as well as by variations of '''Bea Etin Yazz''' ("Little No Shirt" in [Navajo](/source/Navajo_language)). As a young child, he colored with crayons and enjoyed making art. Bill and Sallie Lippencott, who ran the Wide Ruins Trading Post, recognized his talent and encouraged his art. He exhibited for the first time at age 10, with his work shown at a museum in [Springfield, Illinois](/source/Springfield%2C_Illinois).{{Cite book|last=Marter|first=Joan M.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sPGdBxzaWj0C&q=beatien+yazz|title=The Grove Encyclopedia of American Art|date=2011|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-533579-8|language=en}} Yazz attended the Wide Ruins Day School, followed by two years at the [Santa Fe Indian School](/source/Santa_Fe_Indian_School). Then he studied for three years at [Fort Wingate Indian School](/source/Fort_Wingate_High_School) and one year at the [Sherman Indian High School](/source/Sherman_Indian_High_School). During [World War II](/source/World_War_II), Yazz lied about his age in order to serve in the [United States Marine Corps](/source/United_States_Marine_Corps) as a [Code talker](/source/Code_talker), utilizing his knowledge of the Navajo language.{{Cite news|date=1958-11-09|title='Paint the Wind' Continues Story of Navaho Indian Boy|pages=33|work=Fort Worth Star-Telegram|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/87104512/paint-the-wind-continues-story-of/|access-date=2021-10-14}}{{Cite news|last=Sortore|first=Nancy|date=1975-03-16|title=Navajo Artist's Expressions Of Life Still Show Humor|pages=49|work=Arizona Daily Star|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/87104892/navajo-artists-expressions-of-life/|access-date=2021-10-14}} When he returned to the reservation after the war, he dedicated himself to art. In the late 1940s he received a scholarship to study under painter [Yasuo Kuniyoshi](/source/Yasuo_Kuniyoshi) as part of a summer program at [Mills College](/source/Mills_College). During this program, he was able to paint with [oil paint](/source/oil_paint) from a live model.{{Cite web|title=Native American Artist Biographies: Beatien Yazz|url=https://www.bischoffsgallery.com/online-store/beatien-yazz.htm|access-date=2021-10-14|website=www.bischoffsgallery.com}} == Art career == Though Yazz worked for a time as a police officer in [Fort Defiance, Arizona](/source/Fort_Defiance%2C_Arizona) and as an art teacher at [Stewart Indian School](/source/Stewart_Indian_School) in [Carson City, Nevada](/source/Carson_City%2C_Nevada), he dedicated most of his adult life to creating art full time. Yazz painted subjects familiar to him in colorful [Flatstyle](/source/Flatstyle_(disambiguation)) with minimal backgrounds. He often used [casein paint](/source/casein_paint) for his works.{{Cite news|last=Bucklew|first=Joan|date=1965-08-29|title=Paintings by Beatien Yazz|pages=60|work=Arizona Republic|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/87104195/paintings-by-beatien-yazz/|access-date=2021-10-14}} His paintings "record the natural movement of light and air with powerful drama." Yazz earned acclaim with collectors by the 1950s.{{Cite web|title=Beatien Yazz Paintings, Adobe Gallery, Santa Fe|url=https://www.adobegallery.com/artist/Beatien_Yazz_1928_Present31210631|access-date=2021-10-14|website=www.adobegallery.com}} Alberta Hannum wrote two popular books about his life, including illustrations by Yazz. ''Spin a Silver Dollar: The Story of a Desert Trading-post'' ([Viking Press](/source/Viking_Press), 1945) (original title as published in 1945: ''Spin a Silver Coin'')told of his early life meeting the Lippencotts, and its sequel ''Paint the Wind'' (1958) continued Yazz's story as a young adult.{{Cite book|last=Hannum |first=Alberta |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RrgwMwEACAAJ |title=Paint the Wind. Illustrated with Paintings by Beatien Yazz. [On the Early Manhood of Beatien Yazz, Known as Jimmy Toddy.] |date=1958 |publisher=Viking Press |language=en}}{{Cite book|last=Affairs |first=United States Bureau of Indian |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=96MZAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA82|title=Suggested Books for Indian Schools: An Annotated List which Includes Library Books, Recommended Textbooks, Reference Material, and Maps, Selected with Special Reference to the Interests and Activities of Rural Communities|date=1959|language=en}} ''Spin a Silver Dollar'' was condensed by [Reader's Digest](/source/Reader's_Digest) and was presented on [Cavalcade of America](/source/Cavalcade_of_America).{{Cite news |date=16 March 1955 |title=Exhibition Opens Today At Botts |pages=8|work=Albuquerque Journal|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/69632528/albuquerque-journal/|access-date=2021-10-14}}{{Cite news|date=1955-07-17|title=Beatien Yazz Is Filmed by Walt Disney|pages=15|work=Albuquerque Journal|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/87104147/beatien-yazz-is-filmed-by-walt-disney/|access-date=2021-10-14}} In addition to exhibiting and selling paintings, Yazz also created works on commission. He created some tiles for Gila Pottery, designed fabric on commission for Tumble-weed Prints, and had his work reproduced as greeting cards for a number of companies. Probably his most famous painting was an untitled one that art director [Gary Burden](/source/Gary_Burden) found at a yard sale for 25 cents and later used for the front sleeve of [The Eagles'](/source/The_Eagles) 1974 album [On The Border](/source/On_The_Border).{{Cite web |title=On The Border: How Eagles Redrew Their Own Boundaries |url=https://www.thisisdig.com/feature/on-the-border-eagles-album/ |access-date=2023-12-18 |website=Dig! |language=en-US}} By the 1970s, Yazz had developed severe eye problems and deteriorating eyesight. A Navajo [Medicine man](/source/Medicine_man) told him this was punishment for painting sacred Navajo figures. Without treatment, his eyes never improved, and Yazz was not able to paint past 1991. In early 1983, Yazz worked with Sallie Wagner (formerly Sallie Lippencott) and J.J. Brody to publish ''Yazz: Navajo Painter'', which told his life story and included a number of illustrations.{{Cite book|last1=Wagner|first1=Sallie|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hVBFAAAACAAJ|title=Yazz: Navajo Painter|last2=Brody|first2=J. J.|last3=Yazz|first3=Beatien|date=1983-05-01|publisher=Northland Publishing|isbn=978-0-87358-331-2|language=en}} == Collections == Some of his works have been in the permanent collection of institutions including the [Smithsonian American Art Museum](/source/Smithsonian_American_Art_Museum), the [Gilcrease Museum](/source/Gilcrease_Museum), the [Logan Museum of Anthropology](/source/Logan_Museum_of_Anthropology), the [Museum of New Mexico](/source/Museum_of_New_Mexico), the [Philbrook Museum of Art](/source/Philbrook_Museum_of_Art), and the [Southwest Museum of the American Indian](/source/Southwest_Museum_of_the_American_Indian). == Death == Yazz died on June 20, 2021, at the age of 92.{{cite web |title=Diné (Navajo) |url=https://americanindian.si.edu/collections-search/objects/NMAI_279250 |website=National Museum of the American Indian |access-date=17 January 2024}}{{cite web |title=Beatien Yazz, Navajo artist |url=https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=pfbid0sZaiJ9hNCZQhLgyBDHDLHGqUXw7QkNtzwMJSyeKgixFG69HdQAitSVbYzZEaMpbal&id=693807704036314&comment_id=4012838848799833&reply_comment_id=1152602925379466 |website=Apache County Library District on Facebook |access-date=17 January 2024 |date=21 June 2021}} == Works == * [https://books.google.com/books?id=E-UDAAAAMAAJ&q=Spin%20a%20Silver%20Dollar ''Spin a Silver Dollar: The Story of a Desert Trading-post''] (1945), by Alberta Hannum * ''Paint the Wind'' (1958), by Alberta Hannum * ''Yazz: Navajo Painter'' (1983), with Sallie Wagner and J.J. Brody == References == {{Reflist}} == External links == * [https://www.mutualart.com/Artist/Beatien-Yazz/AB288FEB3B3DD8C1/Artworks Beatien Yazz artworks at MutualArt] * [https://americanindian.si.edu/collections-search/search?edan_q=Beatien+Yazz Beatien Yazz work's in the National Museum of the American Indian] {{Authority control}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Yazz, Beatien}} Category:1928 births Category:2022 deaths Category:20th-century American painters Category:20th-century indigenous painters of the Americas Category:Native American painters Category:Navajo artists Category:Painters from Arizona Category:Native American textile artists Category:American textile designers Category:Navajo code talkers Category:20th-century Native American artists Category:20th-century American illustrators Category:Native American illustrators Category:American children's book illustrators Category:Textile artists from Arizona Category:21st-century Native American artists Category:Navajo printmakers --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Beatien Yazz](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beatien_Yazz) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beatien_Yazz?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.