Handcrafted Drums

ARTIST STATEMENT

I am an enrolled tribal member of the Dine’ (Navajo) Nation. My name is Kristina Nez Begay. I am the owner and a community healer at Hozho’ Healing Wellness Community – an Intergenerational Space for Connection, Sharing, & Healing located in Green Bay, Wisconsin.

I am an Indigenous artist specializing in drums and other sacred tools. I understand the importance of right relationship and creating from a good place. Much care is taken with each material to honor and use in a good way. Making drums is a concentration of mine. Part of my purpose is to move beyond the basic mechanics of the drum making process into something deeper and more meaningful. Deep within each drum, is my prayer to bring healing to all People and Mother Earth.

The cultural unrest that rose up was an impetus for me to channel some of my own unsettled emotions and energy into creating something positive. As an activist, I put my values and message into some pieces in the hopes that they would be catalysts to conversations that can lead to better understanding of others cultures. I created many drums that each focused on an issue in Indian Country and the political climate of the global community.

Other pieces are centered on an event, a vision, or even a recurring dream in my life. I take what I am getting at the energetic and intuitive level and bring it down to the physical in the form of a drum. This makes it tangible and provides an opportunity for others to see into that visionary experience. The drum then tells a story for others to hear and participate in if they choose.

DRUM MAKING IS A CEREMONY

Making a drum is a very special and sacred time for me. It has a way about it that is inherently different from other things. It is a tool the Creator uses to provide me with an opportunity to recognize what I need to work on.

The drum will become what it wants to become. Forcing it or working too quickly will only create more frustration. This is a reminder to slow down and be aware of how we share our Light with others. You must take time to breathe steady and strong as you pull the strings. This is time to connect and listen to your heart beat and connect to the heart beat of Mother Earth. Listen and allow the process. There is no place for control or resistance.
In life, often we hold things in and push down painful emotions and traumas. When we are afraid to look at our own reflections and release the wounds and pains of the past, we are holding our breath.

Taking steps to be more conscious of how we are breathing in daily life allows us to take in “inspiration” from the world around us. Exhaling is the place for us to move heaviness out. In the drum construction process, breathing while pulling the straps is practice for what we should do normally. We are then, breathing life into our creation and being conscientious of our movements and flow along with choosing what intentions and thoughts to hold.

I create drums in Sacred Space with good thoughts, positive intentions, blessings and gratitude.

Science shows that drumming 4 beats per second for 12- 14 minutes switches us to the theta brain wave state. This is the place of luminous awareness otherwise referred to as shamanic state of consciousness. Here we can obtain guidance about our lives and communicate with the Divine.