This is a very deeply carved wide bowl by Jason Ebelacker.  Jason is a son of noted potter Richard Ebelacker and grandson of Virginia Ebelacker.  This bowl is coil built and very flat across the top.  The bowl is carved with two bear paw medallions.  Separating them are cloud and lightning designs.  The bear paw design is classic in Santa Clara pottery as it represents a story of a bear leading the Pueblo people to water during a drought.  The bowl is very deeply carved!  Note as well the matte area which creates a strong visual contrast to the highly polished surface.  The base of the bowl is also stone polished.  It is fired a deep black coloration.  The piece is signed on the bottom in the clay.

LuAnn Tafoya is known for her highly polished traditional Santa Clara pottery.  This is a stunning large black storage jar.  A storage jar is a particular shape in Santa Clara Pueblo pottery which usually has a round shape and a short neck.  This piece is a classic shape with a very round form and just a slight indention before the neck.  There are four bear paws on the piece.  They are impressed into the clay and then the entire piece is fully polished.  Did  you know that the whole piece has to be polished at one time?  Otherwise, the clay slip will dry and it won’t be as shiny in appearance.  LuAnn said of her water jars:

“Sometimes the shape depends on how the clay is drying. Sometimes you have to bring it in right away. It is OK you can make it wider and then come in. I think for the first storage jar I used the puki given to my mom from my grandmother. It was narrow at the bottom. They made the base so the puki was just thin. We had to wire it to keep it attached. Later I made a new one with that form so I could have it for the future. It’s a nice shape going up from the bottom.”  LuAnn Tafoya, Spoken Through Clay

The storage jar is highly polished and fired a striking glassy black coloration.  LuAnn is one of the few potters making piece of such quality and historic continuity.  The jar is signed on the bottom in the clay, “LuAnn Tafoya”.   It is an exceptional example of her skill, creativity, and commitment to traditional Santa Clara pottery.

This larger jar by Eric Lewis is a new design for his pottery.  It is a large bee graphic on one side and rain designs on the remainder of the jar.  The piece has high shoulders and a short neck.  The bee works well in it’s stylized form on this jar.  Eric uses his designs to follow the shape of the jar and accentuate its form.  Eric has taken classic Acoma linear designs and made them both bolder and more graphic. The result is a striking jar with tightly painted imagery.  Eric remains one of the young Pueblo potters to watch!

This is wide jar by Debbie Clashin is painted with a stylized bird design.  She is a cousin of noted potter Mark Tahbo and a descendant of Grace Chapella.  Debbie has quickly become well known for her large-sized traditional Hopi-Tewa pottery. The jar has a sloping shoulder and there are two sections with swirling birds.  Surrounding the birds are dragonflies and rain patterns.  The jar is painted with bee-weed and natural clay slips.  It was traditionally fired with blushes across the surface of the jar.   It is signed on the bottom with her name and a pipe for his “Tobacco Clan”.

Susie Crank is a daughter of Rose Williams and a sister of Alice Cling.  Each piece is coil built, stone polished and amazingly, she says he may burnish a piece over and over as many as 15 times to get a high shine!  This water jar has a round body and an elongated neck.  The jar is then traditionally fired to create the fire-clouds on the surface.  The colorations on this jar range from black to a deep red.  The jar was covered in pine-pitch after the firing, a continuation of the traditional Navajo pottery when pitch was used to make the pottery waterproof.  Today, the pine pitch seals the vessel and gives it the shine.  This jar has a stunning shine and a great feel to the surface!  It is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Susie Crank”.

This is an intricately painted miniature jar by Dolores Curran.  Before she began making her carved pieces, she was well known for her delicately painted buff-on-red pottery.  This piece is unusual as it is fired black.  It is fully polished and the jar has a square neck.  The neck has a cloud and rain design and the shoulder has a water serpent (avanyu) encircling the piece.  Much like her buff-on-red pieces, they design has to be painted over several times.  Note the precision of the lines!  The jar is signed on the bottom.  It is in very good condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.

Charmae Natseway is known for her exceptional painted pottery and use of distinctive forms. This wonderful seedpot has flat sides and an unusual pyramid form.  The sides are each painted with different plant designs near the base.  Above the plants is a band of leaf patterns and then two larger stylized birds.  Note the very delicate lines painted for the plants and birds!  All the various colors are from natural clay slips.  The piece is signed on the bottom, “Charmae Natseway”.  It is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.  It is a striking balance of traditional and historic imagery on a very modern form.

Jason Garcia is known for his tiles, he also creates a few boxes and jars each year.  This box is one that has four Corn Maidens painted, with one on each side.  They are painted in the old “two-dimensional” style of Santa Clara art and each of the Corn Maidens represents a different direction (North, South, East, West) based on the color (Blue, Red, White, Yellow).  In one hand she is holding corn and the other a basket of cornmeal.  On the ground are stylized corn plants and there is a corn design on each of the dresses.  The detail in this box is fantastic, with even small detailed created with the clay. The box is made of native clay and he uses native clay slips for the colors.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay “Okuu Pin” which is Jason’s name in Tewa (which means Turtle Mountain).  The piece is certainly inspired by the work of San Ildefonso painter Gilbert Atencio and his Blue Corn Maiden (see last photo).

Russell Sanchez continues to be one of the true innovators in Pueblo pottery.  Each piece is perfectly coil built, stone polished and etched.  This bowl is one of his first incorporating a polished white clay slip!  The white is the same white clay used on historic San Ildefonso polychrome pottery when it was stone polished.  This piece has a culturally inspired design with two different old style Sun Faces.  Each sun is different and they are meant to represent the Summer people and the Winter people at the Pueblo.  Each sun is etched into the white clay and they are highlighted with red and black clay.  The rim has a rain design while the base has mountains with the sun rising.  There is a striking degree of complexity in the etched imagery on this piece!  As well, it is a true polychrome with polished deep red, white, black, light red and matte tan, red and black clay colorations.  There are three inset bands of hematite hei-shi beads which encircle the bowl.  As Russell continues to innovate from historic designs, he says, “Tradition means moving forward and adding to it. You keep moving forward.  If we stayed stagnant we would no longer exist.”  The bottom of the bowl is indented, which reflects the historic San Ildefonso pottery with the indented base which would be worn on the head.   The bowl is signed on the bottom in the clay.  The second to the last photo is of the bowl before it was fired. The last photo is of a similar Sun design from a San Ildefonso plate from the 1920s.  It is exciting to see how this imagery is not new but Russell’s reinterpretation of it both modernizes and revives.

Russell Sanchez: Contemporizing the Pueblo Pottery Past

This jar by Alice Cling has a deep coloration from the firing.  Alice Cling is one of the great names in the revival of Navajo pottery in the 1980s. This jar is coil built, stone polished around the neck and striated corn husk designs down the size.  This jar is a very traditional Navajo shape with a round body and a short neck.  The design is very subtle but is the coloration of the firing which is so dynamic!  The colors on this jar swirl and range from black to a deep red.  The jar was covered in pine-pitch after the firing, a continuation of the traditional Navajo pottery when the pitch was used to make the pottery utilitarian.  The jar is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Alice Cling”.  Alice has won numerous awards for her pottery and been featured in books such as “Legacy of Generations.”

This is a charming jar by Lois Gutierrez.  She is one of the few potters who continues to create polychrome pottery at Santa Clara.  Polychrome, or more than three different colors of clay slips, are all painted onto the surface of the vessel before it is fired. This jar has a kive step design on one side, giving it a taller appearance.  On the top there are also step designs representing the four directions.  On the jar itself, it is fully designed with a Koshari Clown who is fishing.  He is sitting by the water with a fishing pole and melons and a soda.  The fishing pole has the line into the water and as the jar is turned you can see the fish below the water surface and follow the line.  It is wrapped around his foot!  All the colors are derived from natural clay slips.   This jar has over five different natural clay colors utilized.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Lois”.  It is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks restoration or repair.   This is certainly a classic piece of Lois’s pottery which combines a cultural legacy in design with one in clay.

ois Gutierrez is one of the few potters who continues to create polychrome pottery at Santa Clara.  Polychrome, or more than three different colors of clay slips, are all painted onto the surface of the vessel before it is fired. This water jar has a wonderful shape with very round body and elongated neck.  The design around the neck is a feather pattern.  Note the use of the three different colors of clay for the tip of the feather in contrast to the white feathers.  The body of the jar has two intertwined water serpents. Note the use of classic rain and seed patterns in the bodies of each avanyu.  Above them is a rain cloud design. What makes them the “old style” avanyu?  Check out the shape of the horn and the shape of the tongue.  They each have the three prong style, and this is similar to the very early historic style of avany painted on the pottery!   The base of the jar is indented, which is reminiscent of the historic Santa Clara water jars which were carried on the head.  This jar has over five different natural clay colors utilized.  This is certainly a classic piece of Lois’s pottery which combines a cultural legacy in design with one in clay.

This is an early jar by Jody Naranjo is from 1990.  It is highly polished to the shoulder and matte below.  The top part is etched with eight flute players as the design.  The background matte area is also designed with linear patterns.  The jar is outdoor fired to create the coloration in the clay.   The jar is signed, “Jody Naranjo” and it is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.

Dominique Toya is known for her intricately carved pottery with sharp ridged melon swirls.  This is an earlier piece of her pottery which is carved with six swirling melon ribs.  The entire piece is fully stone polished to a high shine.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Damian Toya”.  It is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.

This is a very traditionally inspired jar by Ida Sahmie.  It is “The Four Sacred Plants”, which is a design often seen in sandpaintings.  Here, Ida has painted it on a stone polished jar using natural clay slips and bee-weed (a plant) for the black.  The four sacred plants are corn, beans, squash, and tobacco.  There are both painted and matte areas along with incised designs.   The tile was traditionally fired and it is signed on the back, “Ida Sahmie”.  She is a daughter-in-law of Priscilla Nampeyo and Ida continues to make beautifully formed pottery with wonderfully complex designs.  She has won numerous awards for her pottery at events such as Santa Fe Indian Market.  She is the only Navajo potter creating this unique style of ethnographic pottery.   The story of the Four Sacred Plants and the Dine people is as follows:

“Four Sacred Plants are assigned to the cardinal points, and amongst the Navajos Maize is the plant of the North, Beans of the east. This means that both are male and as both are grown for edible seeds, recognition of the physiological function of the male was probably involved in the selection. This is entirely possible since the convention could have been established only very late, after settlement in America. Squash, for the Navajos, is the plant of the South, which is fitting since its fruit is called “eight-sided” and the eight-sided earth (an alternative to the square earth, taking account of the diagonal directions) is female. Also the stalk is angled in sections, a feature deliberately exaggerated when the plant is depicted in sand paintings, and crooked things are female. Tobacco, which the Navajos put on the west, is female because it is used to make smoke which is blown out with the breath, and that is female. Below the Plants are white roots, the significance being that these plants still have their roots in the lower world.”

Dolores Curran creates intricately incised and painted pottery.  She was inspired to create these red polychrome incised and painted by her husband, Alvin Curran.  He was known for his incised San Juan style pottery in the 1990’s.  This piece is one of her lidded boxes. The box is oval and the sides are fully painted with geometric designs.  There are feather, cloud and sun designs.  Did you know that when she paints the designs, she goes over each area at least four times so that the white clay will be dark enough to show against the polished red surface!  The lid has a water serpent incised into the clay in a San Juan style.  The area is matte and there are red, white and brown clay slips.  It is surrounded by a painted cloud design.  Note on the lid there are red dots on one side and white dots on the other, to let you know which way to place the lid!  The piece is wonderfully intricate in painting and complex in form.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Dolores Curran”.

This is a wide jar by Preston Duwyenie.  The shape is one which Preston calls a “shoulder jar” as it is inspired by the historic Sikyaki pottery with the wide shoulders. Preston’s modernist version has a wide shoulder and a small neck.  The piece is made from micaceous clay and slipped with a micaceous clay slip.  It is fired black and the mica gives the piece a somewhat metallic appearance.  There is a single inset piece of silver on the top shoulder of the jar.  The silver has the appearance of “shifting sands”, much in a similar style to the pottery where he has carved a shifting sand pattern.  It is cast by Preston against cuttlefish bone, to create the distinctive texture.  The jar is signed on the bottom in the clay with Preston’s hallmark, which means “carried in beauty”.  There is certainly something both modern and ancient about this striking piece!   Preston is from Third Mesa at Hopi and taught ceramics for years at Institute of American Indian Art (IAIA) in Santa Fe.  He is married to pottery Debra Duwyenie and now resides in Santa Clara Pueblo.  Preston has won numerous awards for pottery, including “Best of Show” at the Heard Indian Market.

This is a very traditionally inspired jar by Dextra Quotskuyva.  She is certainly one of the great innovators among Hopi-Tewa potters.  Her work began with more classic imagery and then has evolved over the years to more unique and stylized designs. This piece is from the mid-1980’s.  It is inspired by the work of Nampeyo of Hano and the early style of painted red on the pottery.  In the early 1930’s Mary Colton at the Museum of Northern Arizona introduced a new clay slip to Hopi.  Previously the red had a more ‘painterly” appearance (see last photo of a jar by Nampeyo of Hano), which allowed the clay to show through. The new red is the one we see used today which more completely covers the painted area.  This jar looks back at the earlier style of Nampeyo and the red which has a more “painterly” appearance.  This jar is painted with red around the neck and the remainder has a classic eagle tail design.  However, note the very thin lines for the checkerboard pattern on the bird tail. The style of the painting is certainly Dextra’s but there is a wonderful homage to the work of her great-grandmother as well!   The bowl is traditionally fired so that there are blushes and color variations around the surface.  It is signed on the bottom with bee-weed, “Dextra” with an ear of corn representing the Corn Clan.   The jar is in very good condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair. The piece comes to us from the collection of Georgia Loloma, the wife not noted Hopi jeweler Charles Loloma and it is a piece the acquired directly from Dextra.  Dextra has been the subject of a retrospective of her pottery at the Museum of Indian Art and Culture called, “Painted Perfection“.

Paulita Pacheco (b. 1943) is a sister of noted potter Robert Tenorio.  She is married to Gilbert Pacheco and her daughter, Rose Pacheco continues to make traditional style Kewa pottery.  Paulita learned to make pottery from her mother Juanita C. Tenorio and grandmother Andrea Ortiz. This jar is coil built, painted with bee-weed (black) and red clay slips and traditionally fired.  The jar has a classic style Kewa bird as the design along with flowers which encircle the jar.  The jar is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Paulita Pacheco”.  It is in very good condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.

This is an original etching by Rosemary Lonewolf.  The figure is a Corn Spirit holding an ear of corn and surrounded by a corn stalk and pollen.  It is 4/60 and titled, “Corn Spirit’s Fertile Form”.   It is signed, “Rosemary Apple Blossom Lonewolf”.   It is in excellent condition.

While Nancy Youngblood is known for her swirl melon bowls and carved pottery, she started out her career making miniatures.  This miniature is from 1975 which makes it a very early piece of her pottery!  It is a miniature kiva bowl and it is fully polished on the inside and the outside.  The edges of the kiva steps are matte in contrast to the highly polished surface.  Note as well the little holes in the sides of the kiva steps.  On larger pieces the holes would be placed in the kiva bowls so that eagle feathers could be attached.  It is amazing that she was able to replicate this concept in miniature!  The bowl is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Nancy Yellow Aspen ’75”.

This is an intricately painted miniature seedpot by Dolores Curran.  Before she began making her carved pieces, she was well known for her delicately painted buff-on-red pottery.  The bowl is highly polished red and painted with a buff clay for the design.  Amazingly, she would paint each piece up to five times to get the color of the matte painted areas deep and consistent enough!  This piece has a feather pattern which encircles the piece.  Below are cloud and rain designs.  Around the top is a water serpent.  Note the precision of the lines!  So why doesn’t Dolores make this style anymore? She ran out of the cream-colored clay slip for the painting, and so only uses it as an accent on her new work!  As well, this is a larger sized piece of her painted pottery, as she mostly made miniatures due to the time-consuming nature of the painting. The bowl is signed on the bottom.  It is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.

This is a classic open bowl by Dextra Quotskuyva.  She is certainly one of the great innovators among Hopi-Tewa potters.  Her work began with more classic imagery and then has evolved over the years to more unique and stylized designs. This piece is from about 1985 and it is featured in the book, “Painted Perfection” on p. 25.  The design is classic Nampeyo pattern of the Blackbird Migration.  The design is very intricately painted and swirls around the inside of the bowl. The bowl itself has a carved rim, which is almost mesa-like in shape.  From certain angles, it is as if the one is looking over the edge of the mesa and seeing the birds flying in the sky!  The bowl was traditionally fired to create the various fire clouds on the surface.  It is signed on the bottom with bee-weed, “Dextra” with an ear of corn representing the Corn Clan.   The jar is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.  The bowl comes to us from the collection of Georgia Loloma, the wife of noted Hopi silversmith Charles Loloma.  It’s great to have a piece with such exceptional provenance!  Dextra has been the subject of a retrospective of her pottery at the Museum of Indian Art and Culture called, “Painted Perfection“.

This is an exceptional original clay piece by Roxanne Swentzell.  It is entitled “Indian On the Edge”.  The figure is one of the few males she has made during her career.  There is a look of uncertainty in the eyes of the eyes of the figure as he is looking over the edge. The piece sits almost flat but when placed on the edge it balances out.  Roxanne had said of this piece, that, its quizzical look and inability to sit evenly on a flat surface is about the feeling of being stranded between two cultures and unable to be comfortable in either one.  It is definitely a powerful piece of her work and a great statement on the lives of many native artists. The hair is sculpted with clay hair ties which extend to the back and the side.  The parrot feathers are tied in bundles and added to the piece. The sculptural quality of the hands and feet is striking on this figure.  This piece is in perfect condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.  It is from early 2000 and signed in the clay, “ROX”.

This is an amazingly intricate miniature by Ida Sahmie.  It is the Day Chant Dance with eight male Yei-bi-chi dancers encircling the jar.  The background area is fully polished the natural color of the clay.  In the background, there are the mesas, clouds, and even birds!  Note how she has also painted the shadows of each dancer extending to the base of the bowl.  Ida also incises into the clay for the faces and the bodies, leather and masks.  She is a daughter-in-law of Priscilla Nampeyo and Ida continues to make beautifully formed pottery with wonderfully complex designs.  She has won numerous awards for her pottery at events such as Santa Fe Indian Market.  She is the only Navajo potter creating this unique style of ethnographic pottery.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Ida Sahmie”.

This is an exceptional miniature by Ida Sahmie.  For the size, it has incredible detail, as one might expect from a great miniature in pottery!   It is the Night Chant Dance with eight male Yei-bi-chi dancers encircling the jar.  The background area is fully painted with bee-weed (a plant) to make it black.  In the background, there are the mesas, moon, and stars.  Ida also incises into the clay for the faces and the bodies, leather, and masks.  The detail here is quite exceptional!  She is a daughter-in-law of Priscilla Nampeyo and Ida continues to make beautifully formed pottery with wonderfully complex designs.  She has won numerous awards for her pottery at events such as Santa Fe Indian Market.  She is the only Navajo potter creating this unique style of ethnographic pottery.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Ida Sahmie”.

“Yei bichei (Yébîchai), or “maternal grandfather of the yei”, is another name of Talking God who often speaks on behalf of the other Holy People. (He, along with Growling God, Black God, and Water Sprinkler, were the first four Holy People encountered by the Navajo.) He is invoked (along with eight other male yei) in the “Night Chant” or “Nightway” sometimes simply called “Yei bichei,” a nine-night ceremony in which masked dancers personify the gods.”

This is a classic original clay piece by Roxanne Swentzell.  It is entitled “The Seduction”.  The figure is made from clay and she is in a reclining position.  Her one hand is holding up her head while the other is extending outward with the finger extended.   She is beckoning the viewer forward.  There is a gentleness to the figure and the face.  The continuous coloration of the figure accentuates the form.  Note the detail in the hands and the feet as well.  This piece is in perfect condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.  It is from early 2000s and signed in the clay, “ROX”.

This water jar by Jason Ebelacker is a striking vessel, which finds its reference in a very historical form. The jar has a very wide shoulder which then curves downward before extending up to the neck.  There is just a slight turn out of the rim. The jar is highly polished and fired a deep black.  The various curves on the jar create beautiful angles for the reflection of light.. Jason is a son of noted potter Richard Ebelacker and grandson of Virginia Ebelacker.

This is an unusual tile by Ida Sahmie.  The tile is fully polished and painted with natural clay slips and bee-weed (a plant) for the black.    The front side has the Yei-bi-Chi figure, often also called the “Talking God”, who is the first in a series of eight during the Night Chant.  The opposite side has the last figure.  The figures are etched into the clay and then slipped with clay to create the colorations.  Ida is a daughter-in-law of Priscilla Nampeyo and Ida continues to make beautifully formed pottery with wonderfully complex designs.  She has won numerous awards for her pottery at events such as Santa Fe Indian Market.  She is the only Navajo potter creating this unique style of ethnographic pottery.  It is signed on the side in the clay, “Ida Sahmie”.

Myron Sarracino is one of the few Laguna potters working today.  He learned to make pottery from Gladys Paquin and creates pieces which are thin-walled and tightly painted. This jar has a high shoulder and a more classic “olla” shape. Around the top and bottom of the jar are classic lightning designs in black and white.  ARound the center is a larger lightning pattern in red with additional rain and cloud motifs.  Note on the rim that there is a  painted “spirit line”, which is where the “spirit” of the painter is able to leave the piece and it is also a tribute to the potters who came before.  It is seen on much older Acoma and Laguna pottery.  The jar is signed on the bottom.

This is an intricately carved canteen by Autumn Borts-Medlock.  She is known for her often fanciful carved pottery and use of unique shapes.  The canteen is built with two handles.  It is fully carved with a series of circles which flow around the piece.  They are either polished or slipped with mica.  There is also a micaceous lid which fits onto the top of the piece as well.  The piece is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Autumn Borts”.

This is an early carved bowl by Nancy Youngblood.  The bowl is from 1977 when Nancy was just 22 years old!  The shape is a classic bowl and the feathers are carved into the clay.  Note the depth of the carving!  Each feather is symmetric and precise.  The entire piece is very highly polished and fired a deep black.  It is easy to see looking at this bowl the level of talent evident in her early work and how that same precision in carving and polishing is still part of her work today.  In the area below the shoulder, there is also a carved bear paw.  It is a charming addition to the overall design.  The bowl is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Nancy Yellow Aspen Youngblood, Dec. 1977”.  It is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.  It comes to us from the collection of Georgia Loloma, the wife of noted jeweler Charles Loloma.

This bowl by John Gonzales is from 1995.  It is one of his few piece which is polished as opposed to matte clay slips.  The bowl is fully polished and has an avanyu etched into the clay.  The avanyu encircles the bowl and there is a single inset piece of turquoise for the eye.  The bowl is in very good condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.  It is signed on the bottom.

This seed bowl by Russell Sanchez incorporates two different colors of clay.  The top and bottom are slipped with a deep red clay.  The center has two bands of black clay which has been stone polished. The design on the top of the piece is a water serpent (avanyu) which encircles the bowl.  Note the additional designs with the avanyu including the dots along the back and the bear paw.  There is a single inset piece of turquoise for the eye.  Below the avanyu are two bands of checkerboard corn patterns. They alternate from polished black to matte with an incised dot of red.  The bowl is beautifully polished and fired.  There are three bands of shell hei-shi beads inset into the piece.  The bowl is signed on the bottom in the clay.   Once again Russell deftly revives historic San Idlefonso designs and stories and uses them for his own contemporary work.

Russell Sanchez: Contemporizing the Pueblo Pottery Past

This jar by Jody Naranjo is from 2005.  It is highly polished and of her few pieces which is fired a deep black!  The jar is designed after the firing.  The top and base of the jar are fully etched with her signature “kiva step” design.  The center band is also fully polished.  Here she has her iconic “Crazy Horse” girl on a horse.  There is additional etching for the handprint on the rear of the horse and the girl’s hair.  The jar itself has square sides which, being flat, add a striking appearance to both the jar and the burnished surfaces.  The jar is signed, “Jody Naranjo” and it is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.  Jody said of her designing:

“As for the design on the top and the bottom, it was the kiva step in the beginning. My family used them but just parts of them, the top half of the design. I started making them just around the top of the pot in one row. Then it became two rows and three rows, and then I started filling in between them.  Now it looks more like a textile, and it’s a signature pattern that I do on everything.” Jody Naranjo, Spoken Through Clay

This is wedding vase by Russell Sanchez incorporates three different colors of clay.  The top half is a lighter red clay, while the center band has a black clay slip.  The bottom of the vase is a deep red.  The wedding vase is etched with a sun designs extending down towards the base.  Note that one side has a checkerboard pattern etched into the clay while the opposite has dots.  Russell has been taking inspiration from the work of early San Ildefonso potters Tonita Roybal and Florentino Montoya for his designs.  They are not copied but his own interpretation and revival of these creative designs.  The shape of the wedding vase is elegant with a strong proportion between the shoulder and the spouts.  Wedding vases are considered difficult to polish as the handles and spouts create unusual angles and directions in which the piece must be turned.  It was traditionally fired and after the firing Russell inset two bands of jet hei-shi beads.  The vase is signed on the bottom in the clay.   Once again Russell deftly revives historic San Idlefonso designs and stories and uses them for his own contemporary work.

Russell Sanchez: Contemporizing the Pueblo Pottery Past

This is a traditional bowl by Dextra Quotskuyva.  She is certainly one of the great innovators among Hopi-Tewa potters.  Her work began with more classic imagery and then has evolved over the years to more unique and stylized designs. This piece is from the mid-1980’s, which can be seen in the color of the red clay, as well as her signature.  The bowl has a series of Red Tail hawk tail feathers painted in four sections.  Separating each of them is a triangular design, which represents the back and wings of the birds.  The red areas are stone polished and the black is painted with bee-weed (a plant). The bowl is traditionally fired so that there are blushes and color variations around the surface.  It is signed on the bottom with bee-weed, “Dextra” with an ear of corn representing the Corn Clan.   The jar is in very good condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.  Dextra has been the subject of a retrospective of her pottery at the Museum of Indian Art and Culture called, “Painted Perfection“.

This jar by Steve Lucas is from 1993.  It is very intricately painted with a sun and lightning pattern. The designs encircle the shoulder of the jar.  Note the very finely painted lines!  There are polished red areas while the black is painted with bee-weed.  The inside of the neck is also stone polished.  The jar was traditionally fired and has slight color variations from the firing.  It is signed on the bottom with his name and an ear of corn (Corn Clan) and a Mudhead Katsina (Koyemsi).  It is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.  

Paula Estevan is known for her jar is thin-walled coil-built pottery.  This jar is very tightly painted with an “op-art” star pattern.  Each of the stars is inter-connected in a lattice-like style.  They spiral out around the jar from the neck to the base.  It is a visually stunning design!   Note how the imagery goes from small at the rim to larger at the shoulder and then small again at the base. The jar has a wide shoulder and just a slight neck.  Paula has a wonderful ability to match the shape and designs of her work perfectly!  The jar is signed on the bottom, “P. Estevan”.

This is a figurative seedpot by Anderson Peynetsa.  The seedpot has a lizard in relief with its head extending up over the top of the piece. The tail swirls around the piece and the white dots on the back are a white clay and are raised.  There are also painted plant designs by the feet of the lizard.   The seedpot is striking both in shape and design.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay.

Sandra Victorino is a niece of noted potter Dorothy Torivio.    Sandra has her own unique style of “op-art”, where the patterns start small, then get larger and then smaller again on the vessel.  These pieces reflect the variety and intricacy of her pottery designs. This jar has the white clay painted with the black bee-weed (a plant).  The jar has a checkerboard snow pattern and a fine-line rain pattern.  They are alternating around the jar as they swirl down from the rim to the base.  The intricacy of the designs and the use of the op-art imagery adds to the sophistication of the jar!   The piece is signed on the bottom in the clay.

Sandra Victorino is a niece of noted potter Dorothy Torivio.    Sandra has her own unique style of “op-art”, where the patterns start small, then get larger and then smaller again on the vessel.  These pieces reflect the variety and intricacy of her pottery designs. This jar has the white clay painted with the black bee-weed (a plant).  The jar has a checkerboard snow pattern swirling down from the rim on one half of the jar.  The other half is a fine-line rain pattern.  Separating the two halves is an eternity pattern.  The intricacy of the designs and the use of the op-art imagery adds to the sophistication of the jar!   The piece is signed on the bottom in the clay.  Sandra creates a beautiful sense of balance between the form and design.

Myron Sarracino is one of the few Laguna potters working today.  He learned to make pottery from Gladys Paquin and creates pieces which are thin-walled and tightly painted. This is a larger jar with a wide shoulder and short neck.  The neck is painted with a mountain motif.  The central band of the jar has four heartline deer as the design.  This imagery is a classic to both Acoma pottery with the heartline signifying the center or “heart” of the animal.  Myron has complemented it with plants which separate each of the deer.  The plant motif is one which is easily recognizable as Laguna.  Near the base of the jar there is another band of triangular patterns.   The jar is a nice balance of form and design.  Note on the rim that there is a  painted “spirit line”, which is where the “spirit” of the painter is able to leave the piece and it is also a tribute to the potters who came before.  It is seen on much older Acoma and Laguna pottery.  The jar is signed on the bottom.

This is a very traditionally inspired tile by Ida Sahmie.  It is “Father Sky”, which is a design often seen in sandpaintings.  Here, Ida has painted it on a stone polished tile using natural clay slips and bee-weed (a plant) for the black.  Father Sky is in the center with the cosmos painted on the body.  Surrounding the figure is a rainbow design.  Note how areas are etched into the clay, as well as painted!  The tile was traditionally fired and it is signed on the back, “Ida Sahmie”.  She is a daughter-in-law of Priscilla Nampeyo and Ida continues to make beautifully formed pottery with wonderfully complex designs.  She has won numerous awards for her pottery at events such as Santa Fe Indian Market.  She is the only Navajo potter creating this unique style of ethnographic pottery.   The story of Father Sky and Mother Earth, and the Dine people is as follows:

“The Navajo people, the Diné, passed through three different worlds before emerging into this world, The Fourth World, or Glittering World. The Diné believe there are two classes of beings: the Earth People and the Holy People. The Holy People are believed to have the power to aid or harm the Earth People. Since Earth People of the Diné are an integral part of the universe, they must do everything they can to maintain harmony or balance on Mother Earth.  It is believed that centuries ago the Holy People taught the Diné how to live the right way and to conduct their many acts of everyday life. They were taught to live in harmony with Mother Earth, Father Sky and the many other elements such as man, animals, plants, and insects.”

Susie Crank is a daughter of Rose Williams and a sister of Alice Cling.  Each piece is coil built, stone polished and amazingly, she says he may burnish a piece over and over as many as 15 times to get a high shine!  This water jar has a round body and a short neck.  The jar is then traditionally fired to create the fire-clouds on the surface.  The colorations on this jar range from black to a deep red.  The jar was covered in pine-pitch after the firing, a continuation of the traditional Navajo pottery when pitch was used to make the pottery waterproof.  Today, the pine pitch seals the vessel and gives it the shine.  This jar has a stunning shine and a great feel to the surface!  It is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Susie Crank”.

This a striking jar by Alice Cling.  Alice Cling is one of the great names in the revival of Navajo pottery in the 1980s. This jar is coil built, stone polished around the neck and striated corn husk designs down the size.  The jar has a polished rim and the etched area has strong variations in color which range from deep black to brown.  The design is very subtle but is the coloration of the firing which is so dynamic!  The jar was covered in pine-pitch after the firing, a continuation of the traditional Navajo pottery when the pitch was used to make the pottery utilitarian.  The jar is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Alice Cling”.  Alice has won numerous awards for her pottery and been featured in books such as “Legacy of Generations.”

This is a very traditionally inspired tile by Ida Sahmie.  It is “The Four Sacred Plants”, which is a design often seen in sandpaintings.  Here, Ida has painted it on a stone polished tile using natural clay slips and bee-weed (a plant) for the black.  The four sacred plants are corn, beans, squash, and tobacco.  There are both painted and matte areas along with incised designs.   The tile was traditionally fired and it is signed on the back, “Ida Sahmie”.  She is a daughter-in-law of Priscilla Nampeyo and Ida continues to make beautifully formed pottery with wonderfully complex designs.  She has won numerous awards for her pottery at events such as Santa Fe Indian Market.  She is the only Navajo potter creating this unique style of ethnographic pottery.   The story of the Four Sacred Plants and the Dine people is as follows:

“Four Sacred Plants are assigned to the cardinal points, and amongst the Navajos Maize is the plant of the North, Beans of the east. This means that both are male and as both are grown for edible seeds, recognition of the physiological function of the male was probably involved in the selection. This is entirely possible since the convention could have been established only very late, after settlement in America. Squash, for the Navajos, is the plant of the South, which is fitting since its fruit is called “eight-sided” and the eight-sided earth (an alternative to the square earth, taking account of the diagonal directions) is female. Also the stalk is angled in sections, a feature deliberately exaggerated when the plant is depicted in sand paintings, and crooked things are female. Tobacco, which the Navajos put on the west, is female because it is used to make smoke which is blown out with the breath, and that is female. Below the Plants are white roots, the significance being that these plants still have their roots in the lower world.”

Susie Crank is a daughter of Rose Williams and a sister of Alice Cling.  Each piece is coil built, stone polished and amazingly, she says he may burnish a piece over and over as many as 15 times to get a high shine!  This water jar has a high shoulder and an elongated neck.  The jar is then traditionally fired to create the fire-clouds on the surface.  The colorations on this jar range from black to a deep red.  The jar was covered in pine-pitch after the firing, a continuation of the traditional Navajo pottery when pitch was used to make the pottery waterproof.  Today, the pine pitch seals the vessel and gives it the shine.  This jar has a stunning shine and a great feel to the surface!  It is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Susie Crank”.

This is one of the smallest ducks we have had from Jamie Peynetsa.  He is the son of noted potters Anderson and Avelia Peynetsa.  Avelia, his mother, coil builds the clay vessel.  Jamie paints the design.  He has strong attention to the detail of the painting as well as his inspiration from classic Zuni pottery.  This duck is slipped with white clay and then painted with designs.  The wings are and eyes are intricately painted and the dots on the front of the head are raised.  It is signed by Jamie and his mother on the bottom.

This is a creative jar by Eric Lewis and his mother, Sharon Lewis.  Eric made the jar and painted the outlines of the dragonfly and the hummingbird. They are surrounded by the bold Acoma style lines which Eric paints.  Sharon, his mother, is known for her detailed painting on miniatures. She painted the very fine lines on the dragonfly and hummingbird.  Check out the precision of the painting of the lines and how they create another dimension to the jar!  They work well together!  The jar is signed on the bottom by both Eric and Sharon.   Eric remains one of the young Pueblo potters to watch!

This miniature jar by Geri Naranjo is a striking shape.  It has a round shoulder and a short neck.  Geri is known for her miniature pottery and intricately etched designs.  Here the entire piece is fully polished and around the shoulder is an avanyu and below are cloud, rain and lightning designs.  The designs are all etched into the clay with precision.  The remainder of the jar is very highly polished.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay.  It is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.

This is a classic kiva bowl miniature jar by Linda Cain.  Linda is a daughter of Mary Cain and the mother of Tammy Garcia and Autumn Borts.  This miniature bowl is carved with the kiva steps on the rim of the piece.  It is a form often seen at Santa Clara Pueblo. The outside of the bowl is polished while the inside is matte.  It is fired a deep black and signed on the bottom in the clay, “Linda Cain”.

Paula Estevan has built a reputation for her highly detailed painted pottery.  This jar is more “trompe l’oile” than “op-art”.  The jar is thin-walled with a wide shoulder and short neck.  The jar has a lightning pattern which extends from the neck to the base.  It is surrounded by linear rain patterns.  The design, however, does fool the eye as the lighting pattern which extends from the neck to the base give the piece added dimension.  It is spectacular painting on this jar and a reflection of how Paula continues to be one of the leaders of Acoma pottery. It is signed on the bottom, “P. Estevan”.

This is a very wide jar by Samuel Manymules.  It is coil built and slipped with red clay and then traditionally fired.  The jar has a stone polished neck and the ribs extend from the shoulder swirling down to the base.  Each rib is pushed out by hand and they come to a sharp point.  There are 10 ribs which extend across the surface of the jar.  However, it is not the size or the ribs which make this jar so remarkable, but the coloration.  Did you know Samuel fires his pottery on its side?!?!  This helps create more dynamic colorations. This jar goes from a deep reddish-purple to dark black and brown.  Interestingly, the brown areas are the more intensely fired sections of his pottery.  After the piece is fired, the jar is covered with pine pitch in the traditional way expected of Navajo pottery.  The piece is signed on the bottom.   It is extraordinary vessels like this which keep Samuel among the top Navajo potters working today.

Hubert Candelario is one of the few potters working at San Felipe Pueblo.  He has been known for his micaceous pottery for over thirty years.  This piece has 44 holes cut into the clay before the piece is fired.  The holes all vary in size and add to both the complexity and intricacy of the piece.  It is always interesting with such an open lattice style or clay work that his pieces always feel so structurally sound.  The piece is slipped 3 to 4 times with a micaceous clay before it is fired. This gives the piece such a deep coloration.  It is signed on the bottom, “Hubert Candelario”. 

This painting by Les Namingha is untitled. It is from a series he has painted using pastel on paper.  The piece is a modernist approach to color.  They are all colors used in his pottery and it is interesting to see how they play against one another in Les’s mind. That playfulness comes out in the lines and colors of the piece.  There are hints of figures and even a dragonfly, but they ask the question of whether they are intentional or simply our minds seeing more in the pastel colors! It is framed in a wood frame with a white matte.  It is signed in the lower right corner, “Les Namingha”.

Steve Lucas is known for his intricately painted designs and thin-walled pottery.  This jar has a red tail hawk as the design.  On two sides the tail feathers of the hawk extend down from the neck and are slipped with red clay.  The head of the bird is also slipped with a polished red clay.  Separating the two birds is a wing design.  Note how thin the lines are on the jar!  The shape of the jar also starts narrow they widens at the shoulder and comes to a small neck.  Perfect to show off the design!  The jar is traditionally fired and has slight color variations from the firing.  It is signed on the bottom with his name and an ear of corn (Corn Clan) and a Mudhead Katsina (Koyemsi).  

This painting by Les Namingha is titled, “Mimbres Man”.  The reference is to the Mimbres pottery of the 1100’s.  There are figurative elements in many pieces of Mimbres pottery.  Note the very last photo and it shows a piece of Mimbres pottery with featuring two men. Les has taken this idea and painted a single Mimbres man as the design.  In the background are the mountains surrounding the Mimbres area in Southen New Mexico.  Much of the coloration is also reflective of the colors seen in Mimbres pottery.  However, take a closer look at the face of the man and how the left has a more stylized eye while on the right it is the eye of a katsina.  The painting quickly becomes not just a commentary on the past but on “man” and his culture.  The painting is certainly a dynamic one by Les Namingha!  It was featured in the book “NDN Art” on p. 64.   It is acrylic on board and it is framed in a wood frame.  It is in excellent condition and signed 0n the lower right, “LN”.   Always nice to have the provenance of a painting which has been published and captures the creativity of the painter!

This water jar by Virginia Garcia is a classic shape for Santa Clara pottery.  The jar has a sharp shoulder which dips down slightly and then extends up towards the neck.  The piece is highly polished and fired a black coloration.  Virginia is a sister of noted potters Tina Garcia and Greg Garcia.   While Virginia is no longer making pottery, this is certainly an outstanding example of her skill.  It is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay, ‘Virginia Garcia”.

This jar by Eric Lewis has graphically painted designs on the surface of the piece.  The bold lines create stylized birds and clouds.  This style is where Eric began and it’s great to see his work return to these bold patterns.  The shape works perfectly for the bold design and the area opposite the parrot flows perfectly on the piece.  The jar is round with a slight neck.    Eric has taken classic Acoma linear designs and made them both bolder and more graphic. The result is a striking jar with tightly painted imagery.  Eric remains one of the young Pueblo potters to watch!

This small jar by Alice Cling has a round shoulder and an elongated neck.  It is the shape of the neck which has been squared off so that it is flat on the sides.  The jar is then traditionally fired to create the coloration.  Note how the fireclouds swirl around the jar creating areas of dark black to deep red.  The jar was covered in pine-pitch after the firing, a continuation of the traditional Navajo pottery when pitch was used to make the pottery waterproof.  The jar is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Alice Cling”.  Alice has won numerous awards for her pottery and been featured in books such as “Legacy of Generations.”

Randy Nahohai was known for his innovative Zuni pottery.  This is one of his classic thin-walled vessels.  The jar shape is inspired by historic Zuni pottery with a high shoulder and slight neck.  The jar is slipped with mica and painted with natural clay paints.  The design consists of five dragonflies encircling the piece.  Dragonflies are often represented as carrying prayers to heaven or the stars in Zuni culture.  Above the dragonflies are triangular designs which represent clouds.  The jar is beautifully painted with various clays for coloration.  It is signed on the bottom, “R. Nahohai” and it is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.

This is owl figure is painted by Jamie Peynetsa and made by his mother, Avelia Peynetsa.  The owl is a classically shaped figure for Zuni pottery.  The piece is charming with a round body with extended beak, tail, and wings.  The piece is fully painted with the feathers.  There is a rainbird design on the back of the head.  In Zuni culture, the owl is the protector of the home and the keeper of the night. He is able to see what others cannot see and is thought to be very observant and perceptive. He is thought to have true wisdom and patience.  Jamie has signed the owl on the bottom.

This is a large clay owl figure is made by Anderson Peynetsa.  The owl is a classically shaped figure for Zuni pottery.  The piece is charming with a round body with extended beak, tail, and wings.  The piece is fully painted with the feathers.  In Zuni culture, the owl is the protector of the home and the keeper of the night. He is able to see what others cannot see and is thought to be very observant and perceptive. He is thought to have true wisdom and patience.   Anderson has signed the bowl on the bottom.

This jar by Alice Cling has a narrow base and has an asymmetrical rim. The idea is that the rim looks like the mountains and mesas in the Southwest.  This jar is fully polished red and then fired outdoors.  The jar has a deep color from the smoke and fire.   The colors on this piece vary from black to a deep red.  The jar was covered in pine-pitch after the firing, a continuation of the traditional Navajo pottery when pitch was used to make the pottery waterproof. Alice has won numerous awards for her pottery and been featured in books such as “Legacy of Generations.”

This is an intricately painted lidded jar by Dolores Curran.  Before she began making her carved pieces, she was well known for her delicately painted buff-on-red pottery.  The jar is highly polished red and painted with a buff clay for the design.  Amazingly, she would paint each piece up to five times to get the color of the matte painted areas deep and consistent enough!  This jar has a feather pattern around the top of the shoulder.  There are two smaller sections with cloud patterns. Below the shoulder, the jar is fully painted with tablita, cloud and water serpent designs.  At the very base of the bowl are two prayer feathers.  The lid is a bear with a painted heartline.  Look at how perfect the lines are!  So why doesn’t Dolores make this style anymore? She ran out of the cream-colored clay slip for the painting, and so only uses it as an accent on her new work!  As well, this is a larger sized piece of her painted pottery, as she mostly made miniatures due to the time consuming nature of the painting. The jar is signed on the bottom.  It is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.

This is an extraordinary larger jar by Nancy Youngblood. The shape is one which has become iconic for her pottery and especially the melon ribs.  The straight sides show off all the curves for the “s” swirl.  Amazingly, there are SIX times the ribs go back and forth on this jar!  These are the wide ribs but are carved at an angle with a sharp edge which creates a strong surface for the reflection of light.  Nancy said of this style of her work:

“I’ve had problems that if I carve it too thin, it will break. I’ve had that happen so many times. I get to the end and I’m carving the single ribs and it has an air pocket in it. You wet it with slip and then when you touch it, with the first stroke of the stone, the clay falls off. There’s nothing you can do. It’s a loss. See here how the S is carved so deeply that the light plays off it so that it almost glows.”  Nancy Youngblood, Spoken Through Clay

Each of the 16 ribs perfectly reflects the light.  Added to the complexity of the jar is the lid.  The ribs not only extend down the side, but over the top and down onto the base of the lid!  There is a kinetic motion to them on this piece which may simply be the play of the light adding to the highly polished surface.  Thee matte area on the top of the lid is perfectly sanded smooth.  This is important so there are no shadows cast from an uneven surface.  In addition to the depth of carving on this jar, consider that each rib has two “sides”to be polished and the surface area of the piece is about double its size!  The lid and jar are signed on the bottom in the clay.    Nancy has won numerous awards, from “Best of Pottery” to “Best of Show” at Santa Fe Indian Market for her melon bowls.  This is undoubtedly a classic of her clay art!

Grace Medicine Flower began her career making miniature pottery with incised designs.  This bowl is from 1990 and it is a significant piece as it is part of the period when she began to make larger vessels with smaller incised areas.  She went back to the early work of her father, Camilio Tafoya, and began to carve her pottery. The entire surface is fully polished.  She also began to carve the rim of her vessels, which is technically very difficult, as it can break in the drying or polishing stage.  This bowl has some very deeply carved sections which extend down from the rim.  There are large central medallions on both sides, each with a hummingbird.  One one side there are four additional smaller medallions with hummingbirds and butterflies.  Grace said about her use of hummingbirds:

“We have a lot of hummingbirds by our house. Who knows about a hummingbird on a piece of pottery? They are so tiny and so little. Looking at the hummingbirds and flowers or the squirrels like we have next door. Maybe even that you can put on a piece of pottery. Anything that comes to your mind that you might think would look good on the pottery is fine.”  Grace Medicine Flower, Spoken Through Clay

The bowl is very highly polished and fired a deep red. The inside is slipped with a mica clay slip.  Interestingly, Grace did all of her etching in the clay before the pieces were fired, which added to their overall difficulty.  The bowl is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Grace Medicine Flower”.   It is large, elegant and stunning!

G

Grace Medicine Flower began her career making miniature pottery with incised designs.   This jar is from 2004 and is one of her amazing polychrome pieces. The distinctive aspect of her polychrome pottery is that she utilized all possible Pueblo techniques:  carving, incising, sgraffito.  They also incorporate mica, polished and matte clay surfaces.  In terms of the carving, there are multiple levels to the carving. Note how the butterflies on one side are carved to appear to be above the green plant designs behind them! As the jar is turned there are cloud, lightning and prayer feather designs. They are slipped in various colors or stone polished.  Note the depth of the carving on the jar!  Grace also slipped the inside with red clay and created an additional design near the base of the bowl.  The rim of the jar is also carved to create additional angles to give the jar a more modern appearance.  Grace said she was always trying to change the rim shape on her pottery and sometimes they would work and sometimes they would break when she carved when the clay was too dry.   Grace said of this style of her work:

“I don’t know how I even started this. This was a new idea to start carving the rim and into the bowl. I was thinking, what would be so different to change her in a way that would be unique. I started cutting areas out, and the more I started the more ideas that came. Have patience, enjoy what you are doing, and really, really talk to the Clay Lady. Like my dad said, prayers and patience.  ”  Grace Medicine Flower, Spoken Through Clay

All the various colors are from natural clay slips.  The technical difficulty in carving this piece makes it a bit surprising that it didn’t crack in drying or firing. The jar is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Grace Medicine Flower”.  While Grace is no longer making pottery, this is certainly a reflection of the creativity and originality of her work!

Grace Medicine Flower remains renown for her innovative and creative pottery.  This is one of her dynamic “basket weave” pieces.  She only made the basket-weave pieces for a few years before moving on to the polychrome pottery.   The concept behind these pieces was for them to appear as if the clay had fallen away and there was a woven basket underneath. The basket areas are carved vertically, incised horizontally and then painted with a clay slip.  This piece has two large polished medallions.  Each is incised with butterflies.  Below one there is another matte medallion with a butterfly and a flute player carved in relief.  Below the smaller medallion are two mica slipped medallions with butterflies.  Take a closer look at the jar and note the overall variations of the depth of carving.  There are at least four distinctive levels! Interestingly, Grace does all the carving, polishing, etching and painted slip on the basket designs before the piece is fired.  It is extraordinary how much time is involved in each piece of her pottery.  The jar is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Grace Medicine Flower”.  It is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.

This jar is part of a new series of pieces by Les Namingha.  This, “Pueblo Series” is focused on universal design similarities among various Pueblo pottery. As Les is both Zuni and Hopi-Tewa, he has a lot of cultural imagery to pull from for this body of work.  Les says of this piece:

“This jar is part of my “Pueblo Jar series” that I started recently. This series interprets or incorporates elements from other Pueblos outside of my Zuni and Tewa-Hopi influenced work.  My focus is on finding similarities in design elements across all Pueblo communities.  Here there are two Zia style birds.  There are similar styles of birds seen at Zuni, Acoma, Laguna and in ancient pottery.”

The jar has a round body and a short neck.  The jar has striking colorations and there are birds painted on each side in medallions.  They are additionally designed with different imagery on for the bodies.  One the sides and encircling the jar are large yellow ellipses.  These bold geometrics accentuate the detailed designs on the remainder of the jar.  It is signed on the bottom.  The last photo is one of this jar next to a piece by Elizabeth Medina. It seemed interesting to show the style of birds from Zia in comparison to this jar.

Jennifer Moquino is known for her clay vessels and exceptional realistic animals.  This is one of her smaller tiles.  It is fully polished and etched.  The piece has a Pueblo girl and butterflies.  The girl is designed in an “anime” style.  As figurative work on pottery is often discouraged at some of the Pueblos, this style of figure is less realistic and more imaginary.  The young girl here is surrounded by butterflies. Each one is a different style of butterfly.  The border on the side has a cloud and rain motif.  It is a contemporary and creative piece!  The tile is framed so that it can be mounted on a wall.  It is signed on the side.  Jennifer continues to be one of the leading innovative potters working today!

Tammy Garcia is known for her amazing pottery, as well as the creativity of her bronzes. This bronze is taken from a series of clay pieces which she made which were inspired by the paintings of Picasso.  The imagery is a Picasso-esqe woman sitting in a chair.  The piece has multiple layers and textures.  When asked about the name and the imagery, Tammy said:

“I thought about a definition of the word, “seed” which I had read.  It was, ‘A seed is the small, hard part of a plant from which a new plant grows’.  It made me think of women who came to the Southwest when the trains arrived in the 1880’s, or with the Fred Harvey Tours in the 1920’s.  They brought with them their past but became enamored with the Southwest or Native Culture. So on the bronze, the woman is sitting on a chair and the back of the chair is incised with Pueblo designs.  The chair itself is has a turquoise colored patina to represent the areas. The woman on one side has a hei-shi necklace and the other a turquoise colored necklace.  These are representative of how those who journeyed and continue to visit here have the culture become an integral part of their lives.  They have become seeds who spread their affection for the Southwest and Native art around the world.  I called this, “Seeded Woman II”.  It is the second in this series to pay tribute to those how become aware of Native culture, respect it and spread their love of the art and artists to the world.”.

The piece has striking patinas to differentiate the various textures and depths of carving.  Much like her clay work, the piece is distinctive in style and yet very sharply defined.  This piece is 3/35 and it is signed and numbered on the bottom by Tammy Garcia. Simply a striking piece by one of today’s great potters with a lot of thought behind it!

Diane Lewis is known for her tightly painted miniature pottery.  This is one of her very intricately painted seedpots.  The top is painted with intricate Mimbres inspired women, fish and a woman playing the flute with a baby.  Separating the various images are geometric Acoma designs.  There is a cut-out in the clay on the top in the shape of a kiva step design.  All the colors are from natural clay slips.  It is an exciting modern interpretation of classic Acoma imagery.  It is signed on the bottom, “D. Lewis”.

This is a wide bowl by Steve Lucas.  The top and bottom are fully polished red. The center section is painted with stylized katsina masks and star patterns.  Steve said of this style of his pottery:

“I try to mix the abstract and the classic design elements on the top to show how the two could be connected. I was always interested looking at stars and finding inspiration there. Where I fire there are no street lights. I can sit at night and see everything and watch a lot of stars.  In my pottery the katsina masks are not an exact representation of them but simply have elements of them in there. I would go and watch the dances, and I liked the way the katsinas looked so I began to put them on the pottery.”  Steve Lucas, Spoken Through Clay

On this jar, it is possible to see a variety of different katsinas from a Chakwaina to Kokopelli to Ogres.  The designs are painted with bee-weed (black) and a red clay slip. The red clay is stone polished for shine and there is just a bit of mica in the clay.  The bottom of the jar is fully polished red.  The jar is traditionally fired which creates the blushes on the surface.  It is signed on the bottom with his name and an ear of corn (Corn Clan) and a Mudhead Katsina.

Dextra Quostkuyva Nampeyo is certainly one of the most influential Hopi-Tewa potters of the last 50 years. Not only has she taught numerous potters (Steve Lucas, Yvonne Lucas, Les Namingha, Loren Ami, Hisi Nampeyo, to name just a few), but her creative designs and forms changed have dramatically influenced the pottery itself.  This jar is from around 2000 and it has a wide shoulder and a slight neck. The jar is fully polished in a vertical manner to create an “onion skin” appearance.  This is style of polishing often seen in historic pottery.  The jar is then painted with simple textile or shawl designs.  The black band has polished white areas with arrow designs.  The red section is fully polished.  Note how the shapes of the sections are smaller at the base, wide at the shoulder and then smaller at the neck.  It’s always nice to see a piece of her pottery with such strong polished areas.  The jar was traditionally fired which resulted in the striking blushes on the surfaces.  The jar is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Dextra” along with a corn plant to represent the Corn Clan.  It is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.