MOENCOPI, Ariz. — The Honanie family is making a name for themselves not only in Moenkopi, but also in Cowboys & Indians, the premier magazine of the West.
Featured on the July cover of C&I is 16-year-old Kristy Honanie, standing on the edge of a shallow cliff, wearing a traditional Zuni Butterfly Dress.
In the photo, Kristy stands overlooking an area of the Navajo Nation, just east of Moenkopi. She is backlit by the final rays of the sun, which are magnified in soft orange hues made even more surreal by a light powdering of smoke leftover from a wildfire burning southeast of the reservation.
Photographer Chris Dickinson said he knew right away that the moment was magical.
“The impact was absolutely immediate to me,” he said. “As soon as I took the picture, it was like, ‘Wow, this is something magical that is happening right now.’”
After taking the first photo Dickinson showed Kristy’s father, Gilbert, and together they began photographing Kristy together. At one point Dickinson captured Gilbert with Kristy and her sister Sara.
Gilbert, who also takes professional quality photos, along with his daughter Sara, said the moment couldn’t be replicated.
“Everything was very pretty and when we went in to edit it, the colors of Kristy came back and the background became really dreamy with that orangey-hazy look and it came out looking really neat,” Gilbert said. “With the color of the sun and the partial smoke it really changed the color dynamic in making it more orange than it normally would be.”
The photos were taken in 2019 and since then, variations of pictures taken by Honanie have been turned into different art forms, including an oil painting by a local teacher. A framed print hangs in the Honanie’s home and it was featured and won first place at the Coconino County Fair’s Fine Art competition.
Dickinson, a western lifestyle photographer, who’s work has been featured in C&I, American Quarter Horse Association (AQHA), Cowgirl Magazine, Western Horseman and Working Ranch, held onto the image for several years until C&I reached out to him asking if he could help them out with a cover photo for their July issue.
“One of the editors asked if I had any material that could be suitable for their special issue called ‘Into the West’. I put together a folder of images of maybe a dozen different images to review for the cover and the picture of Kristy was one of them. When they got that picture, they almost immediately called me and were just enamored with the image. They wanted to know more about it and get the background,” he said.
Dickinson approached Gilbert and asked him if there were any issues with it being used as a cover photo. He also shared with C&I the special moment and story behind the photo.
“As I’ve learned for so long being in the industry and the work that I do, the lifestyle work that I do, over and over our images aren’t just snapshots, they’re stories,” Dickinson said. “Behind each image is such a soulful story, whether that be from what we did with Gil and his family in Moenkopi to pictures of the western lifestyle in general with the people that I’m around. It’s not just a snapshot, it’s a story.”
Gilbert said the family didn’t have any problems with it being printed and later helped put C&I in contact with the Hopi Education Endowment Fund (HEEF), after the magazine decided they wanted to give back to the Hopi communities through a scholarship opportunity through a limited sale of prints.
“Post image and now through C&I, one of the first things that they wanted to do was asking how they could give back through this image,” Dickinson said.
For two months, from release of the cover, any prints that are ordered will go directly to the HEEF to be used for scholarships.
“The way this whole universe surrounding this image, from beginning to where we’re at right now, has been so magical,” Dickinson said.
As for Kristy, who was 13 at the time of the photo, Gilbert said her reaction to being a cover model for C&I has been humble.
“She really didn’t have a reaction to it, but then as soon as she saw it she was like, ‘wow, it’s my turn to be on the cover,’” Honanie said. “Usually her sister is being featured (through her photography).”
To order your print of Hopi Daughter visit Hopi_Daughter | Chris Dickinson Photography (cdphotog.com)
The Hopi Daughter print is available for a limited time through August 27, 2023. Proceeds from the print will go to the Hopi Education Endowment Fund for the purpose of raising funds for college scholarships. More information about HEEF is available at Hopi Education Endowment Fund (hopieducationfund.org).
MOENCOPI, Ariz. — The Honanie family is making a name for themselves not only in Moenkopi, but also in Cowboys & Indians, the premier magazine of the West.
Featured on the July cover of C&I is 16-year-old Kristy Honanie, standing on the edge of a shallow cliff, wearing a traditional Zuni Butterfly Dress.
In the photo, Kristy stands overlooking an area of the Navajo Nation, just east of Moenkopi. She is backlit by the final rays of the sun, which are magnified in soft orange hues made even more surreal by a light powdering of smoke leftover from a wildfire burning southeast of the reservation.
Photographer Chris Dickinson said he knew right away that the moment was magical.
“The impact was absolutely immediate to me,” he said. “As soon as I took the picture, it was like, ‘Wow, this is something magical that is happening right now.’”
After taking the first photo Dickinson showed Kristy’s father, Gilbert, and together they began photographing Kristy together. At one point Dickinson captured Gilbert with Kristy and her sister Sara.
Gilbert, who also takes professional quality photos, along with his daughter Sara, said the moment couldn’t be replicated.
“Everything was very pretty and when we went in to edit it, the colors of Kristy came back and the background became really dreamy with that orangey-hazy look and it came out looking really neat,” Gilbert said. “With the color of the sun and the partial smoke it really changed the color dynamic in making it more orange than it normally would be.”
The photos were taken in 2019 and since then, variations of pictures taken by Honanie have been turned into different art forms, including an oil painting by a local teacher. A framed print hangs in the Honanie’s home and it was featured and won first place at the Coconino County Fair’s Fine Art competition.
Dickinson, a western lifestyle photographer, who’s work has been featured in C&I, American Quarter Horse Association (AQHA), Cowgirl Magazine, Western Horseman and Working Ranch, held onto the image for several years until C&I reached out to him asking if he could help them out with a cover photo for their July issue.
“One of the editors asked if I had any material that could be suitable for their special issue called ‘Into the West’. I put together a folder of images of maybe a dozen different images to review for the cover and the picture of Kristy was one of them. When they got that picture, they almost immediately called me and were just enamored with the image. They wanted to know more about it and get the background,” he said.
Dickinson approached Gilbert and asked him if there were any issues with it being used as a cover photo. He also shared with C&I the special moment and story behind the photo.
“As I’ve learned for so long being in the industry and the work that I do, the lifestyle work that I do, over and over our images aren’t just snapshots, they’re stories,” Dickinson said. “Behind each image is such a soulful story, whether that be from what we did with Gil and his family in Moenkopi to pictures of the western lifestyle in general with the people that I’m around. It’s not just a snapshot, it’s a story.”
Gilbert said the family didn’t have any problems with it being printed and later helped put C&I in contact with the Hopi Education Endowment Fund (HEEF), after the magazine decided they wanted to give back to the Hopi communities through a scholarship opportunity through a limited sale of prints.
“Post image and now through C&I, one of the first things that they wanted to do was asking how they could give back through this image,” Dickinson said.
For two months, from release of the cover, any prints that are ordered will go directly to the HEEF to be used for scholarships.
“The way this whole universe surrounding this image, from beginning to where we’re at right now, has been so magical,” Dickinson said.
As for Kristy, who was 13 at the time of the photo, Gilbert said her reaction to being a cover model for C&I has been humble.
“She really didn’t have a reaction to it, but then as soon as she saw it she was like, ‘wow, it’s my turn to be on the cover,’” Honanie said. “Usually her sister is being featured (through her photography).”
To order your print of Hopi Daughter visit Hopi_Daughter | Chris Dickinson Photography (cdphotog.com)
The Hopi Daughter print is available for a limited time through August 27, 2023. Proceeds from the print will go to the Hopi Education Endowment Fund for the purpose of raising funds for college scholarships. More information about HEEF is available at Hopi Education Endowment Fund (hopieducationfund.org).