Charmae Natseway is known for her exceptional painted pottery and use of distinctive forms. This large seedpot is painted on the top with an intricate Acoma design.  The central medallion is a star pattern, painted with fine-lines.  Surrounding the medallion are three large birds.  Each bird is different and painted with a deep red clay slip and highlighted with red and pink clays.  The birds are accompanied by plant designs.  All the various colors are from natural clay slips.  The piece is signed on the bottom, “Charmae Natseway”.  It is in very good condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.  It is a striking balance of traditional and historic imagery on a very modern form.

Frederica Antonio is renown for her intricately painted pottery. Each piece is coil built and then finely painted. Her designs are a series of fine vertical and horizontal lines which are then filled in to create larger images in the squares.  This water jar has a sloping shape which sets off the designs.  It is an amazingly intricate pattern which represents the four seasons.  From top to bottom they are Fall (leaves, polychrome), Summer (rain, black and white), Spring (flowers, polychrome), Winter (snow, checkerboard).  The top band has four different colors used to create the “leaves”. The optical illusion of the square inside squares and diamonds inside diamond shapes gives the appearance of movement. T he middle band of the four colors for the flowers is delicately painted.  Her two black and white sections with the rain and snow are exceptionally tiny squares!  The coloration includes two additional colors of clay.  The entire jar is first painted black on white.  Frederica noted that she paints the red first, then the brown color and then had to go back over all the black lines again one more time!  The level of complexity and time involved on the painting of this piece is extraordinary!  The result, however, is stunning with a dynamic appearance and movement to the designs.  The base of the jar is concave, reminiscent of historic Acoma jars which were carried on the head.  This combination of thin walls, classic shape and tightly painted design create a piece which is visually  stunning!  The jar is signed on the bottom.

Charmae Natseway is known for her exceptionally painted pottery and use of distinctive forms. This piece is from 1980 and it is a round jar with a short neck.  The piece is painted with three Mimbres animals. There is a stylized scorpion on one side and a bird eating a fish on the other.  The neck of the jar has classic Acoma bid wing patterns.  Check out all the detailed painting in the checkerboard and fine-line areas!   The fine lines and precision of her imagery is always a perfect match of form and design.  The piece is signed on the bottom.  It is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.

Wanda Aragon (b. 1948) is a daughter of noted potter Frances Torivio. She is also known by her name in Acoma, Dzinats’ituwits’a.  She is known for her traditional style Acoma pottery.  This is a larger piece of her pottery.  It is entitled, “Winter Hunt”.  It is coil built then slipped with white clay and then painted with bee-weed (black) and clay slips. The gray coloration is one of her signature colors.  The seedpot has four sections of design.  There is a  Mimbres style of hunger painted in the first medallion. The second has a mountain lion and an antelope.  The third is a bighorn sheep and a bear. The last is a deer and a rabbit.  The area separating the medallions is painted with a checkerboard snow design.  Check out the incredible detail in the fine-line painting along with the various colors!  It is an exceptional piece.  The seedpot is signed on the bottom in the clay.  It is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.

Stella Chavarria is a daughter of noted potter Teresita Naranjo and a granddaughter of Christina Naranjo. This is a classic piece of her pottery.  The jar has a shape with a rounder shoulder and short neck.  The piece is carved with a water serpent (avanyu), which encircles the piece.  The designs are deeply carved into the clay.  There is certainly a similarity to the work of her mother with the style of carving and carving depth.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay.  The piece is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.  While Stella makes very little pottery today her work continues to reflect Santa Clara pottery traditions.

Toni Roller is known for her classic shapes and exquisite stone polished pottery.  A daughter of Margaret Tafoya, Toni has developed her own distinctive style. The shape for this storage jar is inspired by the work of her grandmother, Sarafina Tafoya. The jar has a high shoulder and a short neck.  It is fully polished and has four bear paws.  Toni said of this design:

“The story behind the bear paw, according to my grandmother, she said that our ancestors came from Puye, from the cliffs. One time when the people were living up there, there was a drought so bad they couldn’t grow anything. They were so worried. They wondered why the bear was well fed and not thin like they are. So they tracked the bear, and the bear led them to the Rio Grande. The reason we put the bear paw on the pots is to honor the bear that saved the people, the ancestors that came to Santa Clara from Puye. That’s why now most of the Indian people live along the Rio Grande. The bear saved all our ancestors.”  Toni Roller, Spoken Through Clay

The bowl was traditionally fired a dark black.  It is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.  It was made in 2017.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay.

This is a very creative box by Russell Sanchez.  His recent work is a modern take on historic San Ildefonso pottery.  This box is etched with five horizontal bands which alternate between matte and polished areas.  Believe it or not this is very difficult to carve the horizontal lines into the clay and have them all turn out even!  Then there are is the checkerboard pattern.  If you take a closer look you will see that they alternate from polished in one row to matte in the next!  Again, scan in on the photos and check out the precision of the etching on this piece.  It is amazing!  Separating each of the five bands of checkerboard are six bands of hematite hei-shi beads, which give the piece a very modernist appearance.  As for the lid, the bear is very sculptural and it is fully polished while the remainder of the lid is rounded and slipped with mica.  This may seem to be a simple design at first glance and yet it is one of the more precision challenging pieces Russell makes, any line was not perfectly even would throw off the design.  The jar and the lid are both signed on the bottom in the clay.  In terms of the round shape, it is a style of box seen at San Ildefonso in the 1920’s. I included a photo of  Maria Martinez round box from around 1924-5.  This jar is a wonderful revival of a historic shape!

Russell Sanchez: Contemporizing the Pueblo Pottery Past

This is an early piece by Tammy Garcia from around 1990. It is a kiva bowl, which is a classic shape for Santa Clara Pueblo.  The bowl is fully polished on the inside and the outside.  The outside edge has a deeply carved line which extends around the piece.  The area from the line to the inside rim is then matte.  While a simple piece, it is always more complex to polish the inside and the outside of a piece, as the extra water from the slip can often cause a piece to crack.  The bowl is signed “Tammy Borts” and it is in very good condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.  Today, Tammy’s work is much more complex with her carved designs.  It is wonderful to see her early pieces and her innate creativity.

Jennifer Tafoya is known for her clay vessels and also her amazing animal figures.  This new jar is complex in shape and design.  The jar is fully polished and the top section is fully designed. There are three different scenes with birds.  The various birds are a bald eagle, Golden Eagle, and Osprey.   Each bird is very intricately designed with the Bald and Golden Eagles in flight and the Osprey catching a fish.  Check out the little details in the background with the aspen trees!  Each section is separated by a different geometric pattern.  The top of the bowl is recessed so the lid sits down into the piece.  The lid is fully polished and etched with a cloud design.  All the various colors are derived from natural clay slips.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Jennifer Tafoya, 2019”.

Rebecca Lucario is known for her delicate and intricately painted pottery.  This seedpot is painted with a star pattern on top.  It is painted with very fine lines.  Surrounding the star are small rain and cloud patterns.  The seedpot is signed on the bottom, “R. Lucario”.  It is in very good condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.

Wanda Aragon (b. 1948) is a daughter of noted potter Frances Torivio. She is also known by her name in Acoma, Dzinats’ituwits’a.  She is known for her traditional style Acoma pottery.  This is one of her miniatures. The jar is a classic olla shape with a round body and a short neck. The jar is intricately painted with birds on two sides.  They are connected with a rainbow and plant design.  The jar is signed on the bottom in the clay.  It is in very good condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.

This clay figure by Virgil Ortiz is from 1995.  It is coil built and painted with a white clay slip and additional red clay.  The black is wild spinach, which is a plant.  The figure is what he called his “Directional Figures” representing the North, South, East, and West.  Each figure was a different color and this one represents the South, as the body is mostly painted red.  Virgil did not want to re-create ceremonial figures in his work and so he created this style to tell a Pueblo story of the four directions, but with his own style.  The figure was traditionally fired and the small clay tabs were added after the firing. The piece is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Virgil Ortiz”.  It is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.

The is a new bowl from LuAnn Tafoya.  She is a daughter of Margaret Tafoya and learned to make the large vessels from her mother.  This bowl is a very round shape and carved with four “gourd” or “squash” designs.  LuAnn said that this was a design which was given to her by her father, Alcario.  It is a flowing pattern and repeated in each of the four panels.  The bowl is highly polished and traditionally fired black.   The pottery of LuAnn Tafoya is an important continuation of the traditions of her family and the pueblo.  Today, few potters create pieces this size and the skill and beauty in LuAnn’s pottery is always remarkable!  It is signed on the bottom in the clay.

This jar by Alice Cling has a classic jar shape.  The piece has a high shoulder and a short neck.  It is fully polished red and then traditionally fired to create the variations in color. The jar ranges from black to a deep red.  It was covered in pine-pitch after the firing, a continuation of the traditional Navajo pottery when pine 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.”  She remains one of the great names in the revival of Navajo pottery in the 1980s.

This is a classic jar by Lorraine Williams.  It is a long neck and a low shoulder.  The neck of the jar is square.  The surface of the piece is incised with rug designs which encompass the entire piece in vertical bands. The background area is textured which further highlights the designs.  It is a striking and complicated pattern.  The jar has been traditionally fired to create the surface coloration.   After the piece is fired it is covered in pine pitch, which is typical of all traditional Navajo pottery harkening back to when it was utilitarian.  Lorraine has won numerous awards for her pottery and been featured in books such as “A Legacy of Generations”.

This is a very traditionally inspired tile by Ida Sahmie.  It is “Mother Earth and 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.  Mother Earth is in the center with the four sacred plants on the left of the figure.  On the right is Father Sky with the stars and sun.  The face is etched, as are the sides of the tile in the center area.  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.”

This jar by Alice Cling is a dramatic shape with the round sides and a short, square neck.  The jar is fully polished red and then traditionally fired to create the variations in color. The jar ranges from black to a deep red.  It was covered in pine-pitch after the firing, a continuation of the traditional Navajo pottery when pine 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.”  She remains one of the great names in the revival of Navajo pottery in the 1980’s

Dominique Toya is known for her intricately carved pottery with sharp ridged melon swirls.  She has created her distinctive style of pottery using native clay and micaceous clay slips for the surface.  This bowl is polished a deep red on the top and bottom. The central band is deeply carved with a single melon rib representing a river.  It is slipped with black mica.  It is a striking contrast between the polished and matte surfaces.  It is signed on the bottom.  Dominique has won numerous awards for her pottery and continues to be one of the leading Jemez potters working today!

Dominique Toya is known for her intricately carved pottery with sharp ridged melon swirls.  She has created her distinctive style of pottery using native clay and micaceous clay slips for the surface.  This jar is fully polished with a section which is carved with sharp melon ribs.  While the jar is fully polished the carved area is slipped with mica.  While the jar is fired a deep black the ribs have a nearly silvery metallic appearance!  The mouth of the jar is asymmetrical and the contrast of the polished and micaceous areas is visually striking in terms of how the light hits the surface. Dominique has won numerous awards for her pottery and continues to be one of the leading Jemez potters working today!

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.  It is painted black-on-white. The large circles are inspired by the ancient Tularosa pottery, which often used this design.  Myron has added to it with his fine-line painting.  There is a geometric series of clouds and rain near the neck of the jar.  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 painted 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 is a water jar shape with a wide shoulder and an elongated neck. The jar is painted with a continuous scene of four rabbits and an avanyu. There is an additional design of a cloud, rain and rainbow.  Check out the variety of colors she was able to use on each of rabbits! Below the shoulder is a rain pattern and a “rabbit ear” design.  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”.   This is an intricate piece of Lois’s pottery which combines a cultural legacy in design with one in clay.

Elton Tewaguna Nampeyo is a great-grandson of Nampeyo, grandson of Fannie Polacca Nampeyo, and a son of Richard and Elva Tewaguna Nampeyo.  His sisters Adelle Lalo Nampeyo, Miriam Tewaguna Nampeyo, and Neva Polacca Choyou Nampeyo are also potters.  This bowl is painted with a batwing design on four sides.  The top is slipped with a red clay and polished.  It is signed on the bottom, “Elton Nampeyo”.

This seedpot by Eric Lewis has a graphically painted hummingbird as the design. He has painted it in a bold style and surrounded it with swirling geometric lines.  Eric has taken classic Acoma linear designs and made them both bolder and more graphic. The result is a striking seedpot with tightly painted imagery.

Jennifer Tafoya is known for her clay vessels and also her amazing animal figures!  This is a piece of her pottery from 2012.  It is a roadrunner with an elongated tail and on the body, there are two medallions.  Each of the medallions is etched with a different scene, each with a roadrunner.  The neck is etched with a feather pattern, the same as on the head.  All the various colors are derived from natural clay slips.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay.  It is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.

Jordan Roller is innovative in his use of thin carved designs on his pottery.  This jar combines a unique color combination along with the complex carving. The jar is fully carved with incredibly detailed designs.  There is a stylized buffalo skull, lightning, clouds, and mountains.  Take a moment to look closely at the designs and the intricate carving.  There is such small space between some of the carved areas that Jordan says he uses just a folded piece of sandpaper to “carve” the lines.  Not only is the jar very intricately carved, but also highly polished and even the inside of the neck is polished!  The jar was traditionally fired a dark brown coloration. It is a beautiful even tonality to the surface.  It’s exciting to see a piece with such complexity and flow of design.  It is signed on the bottom.

Frederica Antonio calls this shape of a bowl with the inturned rim, and “Infinity Rim”.  The bowl is coil built and she turns the rim down into the bowl. The result is a striking appearance with the feel of the designs flowing into the piece.  She uses a series of fine vertical and horizontal lines which are then filled in to create larger images in the squares. The designs on this bowl have two sections of “squares” which are the corn. Separating them are a band of rain and a band of lightning designs.  Note how when she painted into the rim the designs are amazingly tight and fit the curvature!  The black and white coloration give the bowl a very modernist appearance. The base of the jar is concave, reminiscent of historic Acoma jars which were carried on the head.  This combination of thin walls, classic shape, and tightly painted design create a piece which is visually stunning!  The jar is signed on the bottom.

This jar by Eric Lewis has a graphically painted parrot as the design.  The remainder of the jar has stylised swirling clouds.  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 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!

Daryl Whitegeese is known for his traditional style Santa Clara pottery.  He coil builds amazing shapes which are then carved and stone polished.  This bowl is elongated with an oval shape.  This bowl is carved on the outside with an avanyu which encircles the entire piece.  Look closely and you can also see a micaceous slip in the background area surrounding the polished designs.  Daryl said this was one of his first attempts to use a mica background instead of matte.   The water serpent (or avanyu) is part of a Pueblo story where the Avanyu saves the village during a flood.  The rim is also fully polished to a sharp edge.  The inside is matte.   The oval shape is unusual but adds to the distinctive sense of proportionality to this piece.  The bowl is signed on the bottom in the clay.

Frederica Antonio is renown for her intricately painted pottery. Each piece is coil built and then finely painted. Her designs are a series of fine vertical and horizontal lines which are then filled in to create larger images in the squares.  This jar is a classic olla shape with a high shoulder and a short neck.  Frederica has painted the four sections of designs, each meant to represent different flowers.  The designs are a series of “squares” which are the petals with the center being a different color in each section.  There is a band of three different colors of clay which separate each of the sections.  It is amazingly complex for her to both paint the various designs and then add the additional clay colors.  The neck of the jar is painted with a rain pattern which includes four different colors.  This jar is vivid in design, color, and form.  The base of the jar is concave, reminiscent of historic Acoma jars which were carried on the head.  This combination of thin walls, classic shape, and tightly painted design create a piece which is visually stunning!  The jar is signed on the bottom.

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 plate has a central medallion which is fully polished red.  It is etched with two butterflies.  Surrounding the medallion is a series of etched and painted rows which create the basket.  In this case, she has replicated a Navajo wedding basket as the design.  After it is fully etched it is then incised and then painted with different clay slips.  Amazingly, the back is also fully designed with a carved water serpent (avanyu) as the design.  The avanyu is slipped with mica.  The piece is signed on the back in the clay, “Grace Medicine Flower”.  It is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.  Grace made very few plates during her career, which makes this an exceptional piece both in creativity and historically!

Peter Pino is a son of Anita Martinez, a grandson of Santana and Adam Martinez and a great-grandson of Maria Martinez.  He is a brother of potters Barbara Gonzales and Kathy Sanchez.  This piece is a classic oval box which is fully polished.  The lid fits into the box and it is also fully polished. The top of the box has a stepped cloud pattern.  The piece is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Peter Pino, San Ildefonso & Helen (Santo Domingo).  It is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.

Marvin Martinez is a great-great-grandson of noted potter Dominguita Pino Martinez, a great-grandson of Maria Martinez and a grandson of Adam and Santana Martinez.  Marvin works with his wife, Frances (from Santa Clara) on their pottery. This large bowl is wide in shape.  It is fully polished and has a feather pattern around the neck and a water serpent around the body of the piece.  It is very intricately painted with a complex design.  The bowl was traditionally fired black  It is signed on the bottom, “Marvin & Frances Martinez”  in the clay.  It is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.

This bowl by John Gonzales is from 1997.  It was originally purchased from the gallery here during our first show with John.  The bowl is red on the top and bottom and the center band it tan.  It is etched with four interlocking avanyu (a total of four on the bowl).  The designs are very intricate in John’s typical precision of etching into the clay.  Above and below the band are two rows of turquoise hei-shi beads.   The bowl is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.  It is signed on the bottom, “John Gonzales”.

David Baca is a son of Angela Baca and known for his traditional pottery.  This jar has a wide body and an elongated neck.  The shoulder of the jar is carved with 32 melon ribs.  Each rib is polished and they are matte between them.  The jar is signed on the bottom in the clay.  It is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.

Yvonne Lucas learned to make pottery from her husband, Steve Lucas and his aunt, Dextra Qutoskuyva.  She is one of the few Laguna potters who uses all traditional materials and traditionally fires their pottery.  Theis an early piece of her pottery and smaller in size.  The jar has thin walls and a short neck. Around the shoulder, it is painted with a series of interlocking butterflies.  They are white, black, and fine-line. The jar was traditionally fired so there is just a slight blush to the coloration.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Y. Analla Lucas”.  It is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.

Kenneth Tafoya is a brother of noted potters Ray Tafoya and Paul Speckled Rock. He is also the uncle of Jennifer Tafoya.  Kenneth is known for his figurative pottery animals.  This is one of his classic bears.  It is slipped with a red mica for the body. The back of the bear is polished a deep red.  The design is a bear paw surrounded by a feather pattern.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Ken Tafoya”.  It is in very good condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.

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”.

Sharon Lewis has developed her own very distinctive style of painted design.  Her pieces are beautifully formed, thin-walled and then tightly painted.  This jar is a more classic Acoma form with the high shoulder and short neck.  It is fully painted with fine-line star and plant designs.  There is a very intricate checkerboard pattern at the neck and base.  The black is from bee-weed. The jar is signed on the bottom, “Sharon Lewis”.

Angie Yazzie is renown for her thin-walled Taos pottery. Each piece is coil built and made from micaceous clay from near Taos Pueblo.  Angie focuses on traditional shapes along with making each piece nearly paper thin!  It almost feels like there is nothing there when you hold one! This bowl is carved on the rim in a step pattern.  It is often referred to as a cloud bowl or a “prayer bowl”.  The piece is made from micaceous clay so when it is fired it has a sparkling/metallic appearance.  Angie fires her pieces using wood and on this piece, the dark coloration is from the heat of the firing.  The fire-clouds add to the overall visual impact of the bowl.  It is signed on the bottom, “Angie Yazzie”.  She has won numerous awards for her work, including “Best of Pottery” at Santa Fe Indian Market in 2017.

Linda Tafoya-Sanchez is a granddaughter of noted potter Margaret Tafoya and a daughter of Lee & Betty Tafoya.  She is known for her intricately carved pottery.  The bowl is deeply carved with four panels of designs. There is a bear paw and a corn plant on two of the panels. The other two are cloud patterns. The bowl is highly polished and traditionally fired.  The bowl is signed on the bottom, “Linda Tafoya-Sanchez”.  The last photo is of her holding the piece when she recently brought it into the gallery.

“The clay is a really important part of making the pottery. Listening to family members talk about how they used to get clay with Grandma and Grandpa [Margaret & Alcario Tafoya] and how they would make it an all-day venture. You feel that family connection when you are digging the clay out of the earth. It ties you to your home. There’s no other place you are going to find that kind of clay. You think about how many years people have dug that clay out of the earth, how many years Mother Earth has provided that clay for us.”  Linda Tafoya-Sanchez, Spoken Through Clay

Sharon Lewis has developed her own very distinctive style of painted design.  Her pieces are beautifully formed, thin-walled and then tightly painted.  This jar is a more classic Acoma form with the high shoulder and short neck.  It is fully painted with fine-line rain designs and checkerboard snow patterns.  The black is from bee-weed. The jar is signed on the bottom, “Sharon Lewis”.

This is a stunning gunmetal fired box by Russell Sanchez.  The shape is inspired by the historic San Ildefonso boxes from the 1920’s.  The box is fully polished and fired a gunmetal coloration.  On two of the sides, there are mountain lions etched away.  Each mountain lion has an inset piece of Lone Mountain Turquoise.  On the ends are mountain designs with inset hematite beads.  Around the base are two bands of hematite hei-shi beads.  The surround a checkerboard band which is matte and mica slipped.   The lid is a mountain lion lying down and it is fully polished while the base of the lid is mica.  The style of the mountain lion is reminiscent of the stone mountain lions in Bandolier (see last photo).  Russell says here that the mountain lions represent the twin war gods who protect the village. The box has both a striking historic appearance and a contemporary feel.   The box is signed on the bottom, as is the lid.

Russell Sanchez: Contemporizing the Pueblo Pottery Past

This lidded bowl by Johnathan Naranjo captures the motion of three bears.  The bears are standing in the river and one is catching a fish.  They are surrounded by dragonflies.  Check out the exceptional detail in the fur on the bears!  The piece is fully polished with the top carved section matte. The lid is also matte.   The coloration of the jar is derived from the firing technique.  The various shades of red and tan are achieved by lightly scraping away layers of polished surface!  This is a very difficult technique but visually is striking.  Johnathan has won numerous awards for his pottery.  The piece is signed on the bottom in the clay.

This lidded jar by Johnathan Naranjo captures the beauty of the Santa Clara Pueblo Buffalo Dance.  Nearly every pueblo at the end of the year performs the Buffalo Dance.  There are male Buffalo Dancers and the female Buffalo Maiden.  This jar has the male dancer on one side and the female on the other.  They are etched with exceptional detail and realistic precision.  Note the small butterflies around the female dancer!  Separating them are very lightly etched bands of cloud and rain designs. The top section of the jar is matte and a dark brown, the same as the lid.   The coloration of the jar is derived from the firing technique.  The various shades of red and tan are achieved by lightly scraping away layers of polished surface!  This is a very difficult technique but visually is striking.  Johnathan has won numerous awards for his pottery.  The piece is signed on the bottom in the clay.

This large jar by Les Namingha is inspired by Hopi-Tewa shapes and designs.  The band around the shoulder is a series of very classic Hopi-Tewa designs.  They are painted in traditional colorations.  However, it is the top and bottom of the jar which become the overall focus. The top has multi-color ellipses which extend downward from the rim and over the Hopi designs.  They give the jar a dynamic appearance.  When looking down from the top, the color and shape variations almost have a kinetic feel!  Les said he wanted it to look like a “pinwheel” with spinning colors.  The bottom of the jar has more solid geometric shapes and the multi-color forms are more angular. The jar itself is a classic Hopi shape with the wide shoulder and short neck.  It is a complex and striking jar.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay.

Cheryl Naha Nampeyo is a daughter of Shirley Benn and a granddaughter of Daisy Hooee.  She is also a descendant of Nampeyo of Hano. This seedpot is fully painted with Hopi bird designs on each side.  The birds are very detialed with their bodies consisting of various rain and cloud elements.  The red areas are fully polished and the piece was traditionally fired.  There are slight blushes from the firing.  The seedpot is signed on the bottom in the clay, “C. Naha Nampeyo”.

Brenda Tafoya is a daughter of Vangie Tafoya and a granddaughter of Maria Sanchez Colaque.  She is known for her incised Jemez pottery.  This bowl is polished red on one half and it is etched with a hummingbird and flowers.  The opposite side is polished tan and there are three carved melon ribs which swirl down from the rim to the base.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay.

Sharon Naranjo Garcia (b. 1951) is a granddaughter of Christina Naranjo.  She learned to make pottery from her grandmother and is known for her traditional style of pottery. This jar is a classic Santa Clara shape with the wide shoulder and sloping neck.  The neck is carved with a feather pattern and stone polished.  The central band is matte and carved with four cloud designs.  Below that matte band is a carved water serpent (avanyu) and it is stone polished, as is the lower section of the bowl.  It is fired a deep black.  The bowl is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Sharon Naranjo Garcia”.  It is in very good condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.

Frederica Antonio is renown for her intricately painted pottery. Each piece is coil built and then finely painted. Her designs are a series of fine vertical and horizontal lines which are then filled in to create larger images in the squares.  This jar is a classic Acoma water jar shape with a high shoulder and a long neck.  Frederica has used eight different designs on this jar.  The patterns are painted vertically with representations of corn, rain, snow, lighting, stars and other designs.  There are alternating bands of cloud designs painted in red and ocher-colored clays.  The neck is painted with mountain (painted clay colors) and cloud (black/white) designs.  This jar is exceptionally complex and visually varied as it is turned.  The base of the jar is concave, reminiscent of historic Acoma jars which were carried on the head.  This combination of thin walls, classic shape, and tightly painted design create a piece which is visually stunning!  The jar is signed on the bottom.

Erik Fender is the son of Martha Appleleaf and the grandson of noted potter Carmelita Dunlap. Erik combines classic San Ildefonso imagery with his own creative style. His pottery is signed, with his Tewa name, “Than Tsideh”.  This is a round bowl painted with a feather and storm design. The piece has a lid on which is painted a wind pattern.  The piece was fired black then “two-toned” green-on-black.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay.  It is in very good condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.

Jazmin Roller (b. 2000) is a daughter of Tim Roller,  a granddaughter of Toni Roller and a great-granddaughter of Margaret Tafoya. This is one of her first pieces.  It is a low shoulder jar with a slight neck.  It is very deeply carved with a rain and mesa design.  The jar is nicely stone polished and traditionally fired.  She said her father Tim helped with the firing and that this was her first piece she has sold.  It’s exciting to see a younger potter continuing the Tafoya family traditions!  The jar is signed on the bottom in the clay.

Nathan Youngblood is known for his deeply carved and highly polished pottery. This plate shape was inspired by the traditional Santa Clara serving bowls, which had an indention for the thumb to hold them when serving.  Nathan took that shape and added the same indention on the opposite side, creating his own distinctive form. The interior of the plate is fully carved and polished a deep red. The design is a central medallion of clouds, rain, and water, surrounded by cloud motifs above and below. Interestingly, while the rim is polished tan, there are two sections which are carved into the rim of the plate. This is always technically more complicated and adds to the risk of breaking when firing.  While the shape, carving, and designing might seem like enough, Nathan also takes his pottery one step further. After it is fired, he uses small screwdrivers and scrapes the sides of the carved designs and the recessed areas, to create a visually striking contrast.  This style has been called, “the new Santa Clara polychrome”, although I usually called it “tri-color” with the variations of red, matte and buff areas. The plate was traditionally fired.  It is signed on the back in the clay with his name and deer tracks, which represent his name in Tewa.

Charmae Natseway is known for her exceptional painted pottery and use of distinctive forms. This wonderful seedpot has flat sides and a triangular shape.  Two of the sides are each painted with a different style of Acoma bird.  The birds are very detailed in design and painted with various clay slips.  The “back” of the piece is an Acoma triangular design which has an “op-art” appearance.  The top of the piece has geometric shaped with both fine-line and colored areas.  The lid fits perfectly into the top of the piece.  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.

Jennifer Tafoya is known for her clay vessels and also her amazing animal figures!  This is a classic piece of her pottery from 2012.  It has four medallions, each with a different bird.  There is a Steller’s Jay, a Red Tail Hawk, a Browntail Hummingbird, and a Scaled Quail.  Each is etched with intricate detail for the feathers.  Surrounding the medallions is a water serpent which encircles the piece. The lid is a Black Headed Grosbeak which is also etched with detail. All the various colors are derived from natural clay slips.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay.  It is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.

Judy and Lincoln Tafoya (1954-2005) worked together for twenty years making pottery.  Lincoln learned to make pottery from his sister-in-law Sharon Naranjo Garcia.  He was a son of Dan Tafoya and Billie Rose Lee.  Judy is a daughter of Cecilia Naranjo and learned to make pottery from her grandmother Christina Naranjo.  Judy began making pottery in 1982 and married Lincoln in 1984. This bowl is entitled, “Winged Blessing #8”.  It is deeply carved with butterflies, hummingbirds, and flowers.  The carving is deep which accentuates the designs.  Each carved section is also etched light designs to create an added dimension to the piece.  The bowl is a dark brownish-black coloration.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Judy and Lincoln Tafoya”.  It is in very good condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.

This is a classic bowl by Nathan Youngblood.  He is well known for his deeply carved pottery and use of both traditional Santa Clara and other designs. This bowl is deeply carved with traditional designs.  On one side there are two dragonflies in the reverse space of the design.  Look at the matte area next to the red polished area in the first photo.  It is the space between them and the carved away horizontal lines which are the dragonflies.  As the bowl is turned there additional cloud, rain, lightning and kiva step designs.  The deeply carved areas are fully polished red.  The top and bottom bands are polished tan.   The deep red clay slip on this jar is exceptional and contrasts perfectly with the tan and matte areas.  While the shape, carving, and designing might seem like enough, Nathan also takes his pottery one step further. After it is fired, he uses small screwdrivers and scrapes the sides of the carved designs and the recessed areas, to create a visually striking contrast.  This style has been called, “the new Santa Clara polychrome”, although I usually called it “tri-color” with the variations of red, matte and buff areas.  It is signed on the back in the clay with his name and deer tracks, which represent his name in Tewa.

Lonnie Vigil is known for his use of micaceous clay and is one of a handful of potters from Nambe Pueblo.  He has taken this style of pottery and transformed it from utilitarian into fine art.  This bowl is a very classic shape.  It is thin walled and fired with intense fire-clouds at the base. The fire clouds are dynamic in coloration ranging from white to black.   It is this refinement of a traditional art form for which Lonnie won “Best of Show” at Santa Fe Indian Market in 1998.  This piece is signed, “Vigil” and it is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.  Lonnie said of his pottery:

“The fire clouds are the result of the fuel touching the pottery. When we fire the pieces, we use cottonwood bark. The pottery doesn’t get fire clouded everywhere but just in certain places. It’s serendipitous they don’t happen all in the same place. This [bowl was fired right side up].  You can tell because the fire clouding is on the bottom. Often they tell me how they want to sit in the fire. I can fire them upside down or right side up. Some of them are just tottering, so that means they want to be with their mouth to the fire.” Lonnie Vigil, Spoken Through Clay

This a striking corrugated plate by Richard Zane Smith.   For his plates, the coils are smoothed out on one inside but left exposed on the other.  This distinctive style of pottery  is a revival of the pre-historic concept of corrugated pottery.  The earliest corrugated pieces were often baskets which had clay applied to them and then fired, creating a “corrugated” appearance.  The small coils are used as part of the design and give each piece a textural feel.  The plate provides a striking presentation of the corrugated style.  They ebb and flow across the surface creating small shadows when the plate is turned.  The coloration variation changes across the surface, creating a rainbow-like appearance.  The rim is incised to give the appearance of leather and the back in impressed with interlocking designs.  It is signed on the back, “Ricard Zane Smith”.  It is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.  There is a wood stand which Richard made for the plate and which he also signed.

Elijah Naranjo learned to make pottery from his mother Dolly Naranjo and sister Jody Naranjo.  He works in a similar style with the sgraffito designs and brown firing. This jar is from 2007 and it is entitled, “My Backyard”.  It is a shape with an asymmetric neck and the area above the shoulder is fully polished while below it is matte. The polished area has hummingbirds and flowers.  The area below has a geometric style of water design.  The jar was fired to be brown in coloration, so there is a color variation as the jar is turned.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Elija Naranjo”.  It is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.  It received a blue ribbon at the 2007 Santa Fe Indian Market.  It is signed by Charles King, Robert Nichols, and Jody Folwell.  It always nice to see pieces that I judged in the past come back to the market. I remember such a great time with Robert and Jody, as they were both very knowledgable and assertive in their ideas about the work.  That made it a very educational experience.

This is a classic water jar by Anderson Peynetsa. The jar is a beautiful shape with a high, round shoulder and a slight indention before the neck and a slightly turned out rim.  The body of the jar is painted with three rows of heartline deer. Altogether there are 18 of them on this jar!  Each deer is very tightly painted and they are stylized with thin legs.  There is a cloud pattern around the neck of the jar.  The additional design adds to the dynamic appearance of this jar.  The heartline deer is a classic image in Zuni pottery, with the heart representing the strength and spirit of the animal. Anderson has signed the bowl on the bottom.

Diane Lewis is known for her tightly painted miniature pottery.  This is one of her very intricately painted seedpots.  The top is painted with two Mimbres inspired lizards in the center of the piece.  They are surrounded by a spiraling series of three different Acoma designs.  All the various colors are from natural clay slips. The thin lines are very time consuming to paint!  The lizards are inspired by the Mimbres pottery of the 1100’s.  It is an exciting modern interpretation of classic Acoma imagery.  It is signed on the bottom, “Diane Lewis”.

This is a creative jar by Eric Lewis and his mother, Sharon Lewis.  Eric made the jar and painted the outlines of the dragonfly, which is 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 body and wings of the dragonfly.  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 is a creative jar by Eric Lewis and his mother, Sharon Lewis.  Eric made the jar and painted the outlines of the hummingbird, which is 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 body and wings of the 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 oval bowl by Les Namingha is from 2004.  It is painted with acrylic on both the inside and outside.  On the inside, the central panel is painted with a series of Hopi birds.  They are very highly detailed with Les’s famous pointillism style.  There is a strong variation of color and complementary delicate lines.  The around the inside walls of the bowl are very textured to have the feeling of layers of paint.  The outside of the bowl is painted brown.   It is a fascinating piece and great to see how his work has evolved over time.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Les Namingha”.

Diane Lewis is known for her tightly painted miniature pottery.  This is one of her very intricately painted seedpots.  The top is painted with a Mimbres insect in the center of the piece.  It is surrounded by various geometric patterns seen on Acoma pottery.   All the various colors are from natural clay slips. The thin lines are very time consuming to paint!  The lizards are inspired by the Mimbres pottery of the 1100’s.  It is an exciting modern interpretation of classic Acoma imagery.  It is signed on the bottom, “Diane Lewis”.

This is an exceptional tall jar by Debbie Clashin.  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. This tall jar has straight sides and a short neck.  The difficulty in this type of shape is to get the sides even and straight. Her addition of the shoulder and the slight neck is a strong variation in the form, as it seems to give it feeling of completion. The design is one that I first saw her cousin, Mark Tahbo, do years ago.  It is a Koshari clown depicted three times around the piece.  Look in the center of the design and you can see the eyes, then the headdress and the arms and legs.  Certainly, it is stylized but a wonderful way to combine Hopi-Tewa culture into the pottery designs!  The Koshari Clown is a staple at most Hopi ceremonial dances, but also at the Rio Grande pueblos.  It is one of those cross-over figures who can be traced to the diaspora of Tewa people after the return of the Spanish in 1694 after the Pueblo Revolt.  The figures here are tightly painted with thin lines and the mottled surfaces add a nice variance in design.  There are also two small birds on the top of each of the Koshari figures.  They are again reminiscent of Mark Tahbo’s style.  The jar is traditionally fired with intense colorations from the fire clouds across the surface of the piece.  The open spaces and their color ranges add to the “design” of the jar.  The black is all bee-weed and the reds are natural clay slips.  It is signed on the bottom with her name and a pipe for his “Tobacco Clan”.  The last photo is one of Debbie holding the jar for scale.

Mary Louise Eteeyan is known for her delicately painted pottery and carved lids.  This bowl is polished red around the base and painted with flowers around the side.  Mary Louise uses classic Jemez clays to create her designs.  The lid has a polished rim and a sculptured butterfly on top.  Note the detail in the design and shape of the butterfly!  It is signed on the bottom.

This jar byJody Naranjo is from 2005.  The entire piece is fully polished.  The design is alternating horses and butterflies.  The background tan area is also fully designed with linear etching.  The jar is fired a brownish coloration.  It is signed, “Jody Naranjo” and it is in very good condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.

This jar by Harrison Begay, Jr.is from 2001.  He has won numerous awards over the years for his deep carved pottery.  The jar is very deeply carved for the size and has three highly polished bears as the design.  Each bear is carved with a heartline and they are each separated by a lightning design in matte.  It is fired a deep black.  It is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay.

This is an exceptional jar by Russell Sanchez.  The piece is a classic water jar shape but with the traditional “gourd” indentions on all the areas of the piece.  The “Gourd Jar” takes its inspiration from the gourd shards used when smoothing out a piece of pottery.  That same piece then can create an indention on the surface of the vessel.  This jar has eight horizontal indentions on the shoulder.  These are the classic “gourd” indentions.  The neck has 12 and the base has 12 vertical gourd indentions. There is a band of checkerboard designs just below the neck and two more rows below the shoulder.  They are mica and matte in coloration.  The rim of the jar is fluted with 24 undulations!  I took a pic of the area under the rim to show how the clay is pushed up to create the fluted form.  This style of rim harkens back to the original name for this type of rim, the “raindrop rim”.   The rim is slipped with mica, as a contrast to the highly polished surfaces.  All of the hei-shi beads are hematite. Russell continues to revive historic San Ildefonso designs with his innovative style of pottery.  The bottom of the jar has the classic indention of traditional San Ildefonso water jars.  It’s exciting how Russell uses these historic elements to keep them alive on his contemporary pottery.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay, ‘Russell”.

Russell Sanchez: Contemporizing the Pueblo Pottery Past

Russell Sanchez continues to be one of the true innovators in Pueblo pottery.  Each piece is perfectly coil built, stone polished and etched.  This is a round box with a bear lid.  The round shape is one that is seen at San Ildefonso Pueblo as early as the 1920’s (the last photo is a round box by Maria Martinez from the 1920’s).  This box is polished red on the top and bottom band and the center is polished with the polished white clay.  The top band is painted black-on-red with a hatchwork pattern. The central band is etched with a storm pattern and then slipped with red and black clay slips.  The bottom band is polished black and red with matte tan areas to create the checkerboard pattern.  There are three bands of hei-shi beads, two made from jet (black) and one from turquoise.  The lid is a sculptural bear which is polished a deep red and the base if etched with a polychrome corn design.  There are two bands of inset turquoise hei-shi beads.  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 box is signed on the bottom in the clay.  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

Arthur Lopez is one of the leading santos carvers in New Mexico.  After the piece is carved, is covered in gesso (a glue made from rabbit hide) which is allowed to dry and then sanded.  It is painted with both natural and watercolor pigment.  Natural colored pigments, such as the brown, are derived from black walnut hulls.   These are the time involved and historic foundations for his work.  This piece is entitled, “Geo-Madre-Lupe”.   It is a series of interconnected pieces based on the Virgin of Guadalupe.  Arthur said of this piece:

“I titled this, “Geo-Madre-Lupe”.  It is an abstract geoemtric form of the Virgin of Guadalupe.  It is based on the idea of building blocks of faith.  This is the first is a series based on this concept based on geometric shapes and forms.  Their iconography remains visually intact but the concept feels modern”.

The piece is very intricately painted and the placement of the squares seems both fragile and yet perfectly balanced.  The large size gives the piece an exceptional appearance in person!

Arthur’s work is found in numerous museum and public collections, including Albuquerque Museum of Art & History,  Denver Art Museum,  Freedom Museum (911 Memorial at Ground Zero), Harwood Museum of Art, Museum of International Folk Art,  Museum of Spanish Colonial Art, and the State of New Mexico Permanent Art Collection.

Russell Sanchez continues to be one of the true innovators in Pueblo pottery.  Each piece is perfectly coil built, stone polished and etched.  This large bear is one of his classic shapes.  The piece is coil built and then stone polished a deep red.  The designs on the front are the rain and summer and the back are snow and winter.  Note the variation in the heartline which is a series of dots which flow around the surface.  The heartline which extends out from the mouth of the bear. The bear is a symbol of strength and the heartline is a traditional image used to symbolize the heart as the center of power in the animal.  The inside of the legs is polished black. The band across the back of the bear has five rows of square hematite and two rows of turquoise.  On the back of the bear are two pieces of Lone Mountain Turquoise.  It is not often that he creates such a large piece and the result is quite stunning.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay.

Russell Sanchez: Contemporizing the Pueblo Pottery Past

Russell Sanchez continues to be one of the true innovators in Pueblo pottery.  Each piece is perfectly coil built, stone polished and etched.  This box 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 shape and design.  The shape is from the traditional “corn meal” boxes, which were used to hold corn meal during Pueblo events. The raised or step area is a mountain.  This box has two old style snakes surrounding it on three sides.  They are slipped with red an black clay.  On the back side is a Sun Katsina design.  Again, etched into the clay and slipped with red and black clay slips along with the white clay.  Below the central design is a row of checkerboard polished black and matte.  The bottom band of design is separated by two inset bands of hematite hei-shi beads.  Not as if this box doesn’t have a lot going on, but check out the inside, which is highly polished black!  There is a band of turquoise beads separating the black from the red.  Simply spectacular!   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 box is signed on the bottom in the clay.  The last two photos are the box next to a San Ildefonso polychrome cornmeal box from the early 1900’s, for a comparison of this historic shape and polychrome coloration.  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 is a creative bowl by Russell Sanchez.  He continues to be one of the true innovators in Pueblo pottery.  Each piece is perfectly coil built, stone polished and etched. This piece is a round bowl and has 20 circles carved into the clay.  Each is stone polished and they are separated by a mica slip.  The contrast of the polished and micaceous matte surfaces are striking.  Each of the circles is surrounded by a band of hematite hei-shi beads.  So, why hematite?  Russell has begun to use it on his recent pieces for several reasons. There is a traditional aspect in that women wear hematite bracelets when they do certain traditional dances at the Pueblo.  There is also hematite content in the clay slips use on the pottery.  The lid is a fully polished bear which is created with one paw raised. There is a wonderful sculptural aspect to the bear!  The piece is fired to a near gunmetal appearance which is striking with the high polish.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay.

Russell Sanchez: Contemporizing the Pueblo Pottery Past