Welcome to KAHIKO Arts. I'm Dino Labiste and I am the artist and craftsman for KAHIKO Arts. Each item that you see on this webpage is a one-of-a-kind piece. No two items are alike because each artwork is individually hand crafted. Along with the esthetic design of the indigenous objects, all replicas are also utilitarian. I strive for the integration of function and form.
Contact Dino Labiste at KahikoArts@yahoo.com
or call (510) 494-9297 to reserve the item(s) you are
interestd in. Then fill out the Order
Form. If you want to commission a particular item, contact
Dino. E-mail or call for any questions.
For a biography of Dino, access The
PrimitveWays Clan webpage. Visit THE
GALLERY and view his previous artwork and replicas.
Dino has sold his artwork and replicas to the Oakland Museum (Oakland, CA), Monterey State
Historic Parks (Monterey, CA), Filoli Estates (Woodside, CA),
Chitactac-Adams Heritage County Park (Gilroy, CA) and private individuals throughout the United States. He also
has a stone tool displayed at the Native American Museum of the
Maidu Interpretive Center (Roseville, CA).
All indigenous objects of the past served a practical or symbolic
function. Adornment, added to objects of practical use, related
to spiritual knowledge in aiding the power (mana, tipni, orenda, wakanda or manitou) of the object
and so improving its efficiency. All man-made things had a spirit
life and were not regarded by indigenous cultures as inanimate
"dead" objects, as western society now regard a bowl
or a basket. The rule was utility first, decoration second. The
symbolic or spiritual functions of the decorations made the objects
and symbols more than things of art.


Item: Soaproot Brush
Item Number: SB15
Description: Brush made of fibers from the dry, outer layers
of the Soap Plant (Chlorogalum pomeridianum) bulb. The fibers
are bound with dogbane cordage. The handle is coated with layers of a mucilaginous
paste from the steamed Soap Plant bulb. The paste hardened as it dried.
California natives used the soaproot brush for acorn flour processing
or hair brushing.
Dimensions:
Overall height: 5 1/2 inches (14 cm)
Width of widest part of the brush: 3 inches (7.6 cm)
Height of handle: 3 3/4 inches (9.5 cm)
Price: $50.00
Shipping & Handling: $5.00
Total Cost: $55.000

Item: Gourd Drum
Item Number: GD14
Description: Drum made from a gourd with a deer hide drumhead.
The rawhide is lashed with 2-ply agave fibers and dogbane cordage.
The lower ring is made from willow wrapped with tapa (paper mulberry
bark). The designs are burnt on the gourd.
Dimensions:
Height: 11 1/4 inches (28.6 cm)
Diameter of drumhead: 9 1/4 inches (23.5 cm)
Diameter of base: 5 inches (12.7 cm)
Price: $50.00 (reduced price: $40.00)
Shipping & Handling: $9.00
Total Cost: $59.00 (now: $49.00)

Item: Sweet Grass
Item Number: SG14
Description: Braided sweet grass used for smudging (a ritual
cleansing and purification for the physical and spiritual bodies).
To "smudge" is to purify with smoke using sacred herbs.
Dimensions:
Length: 9 inches (22.8 cm)
Price: $4.00 / braided sweet grass
A minimum of 5 braided sweet grass per order.
Shipping & Handling: $5.00 (add $1.00 to shipping cost per additional 5 braided sweet grass)
Total Cost: $25.00 for 5 braided sweet grass
© KAHIKO Arts 2008
All photo rights reserved. No photo files on this webpage may
be copied or reproduced without express written consent from KAHIKO
Arts.