San Ildefonso Pottery

Irene Tse-Pe is a daughter of Dora Tse-Pe and Tse-Pe Gonzales and a granddaughter of Rose Gonzales.  This jar is coil built and carved with cloud pattern around the neck. The carving is in the cameo style made famous by Rose. The jar is slipped with mica to the surface which gives it a bit of a sparkle in the light!  The piece is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Irene Tse-Pe”.  It is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.  While Irene no longer makes pottery, it is certainly a striking piece of her creative pottery!

This is a striking painted bowl by Ramona Gonzales.  Ramona was known for her delicately painted pottery.  This plate is almost more like an open bowl.  It is fully polished on the front and back. The design has a bird which fills up the entire surface of the plate.  The polished background and matte painted designs work perfectly on this piece.  It is signed on the back in the clay, “Ramona”.  It is in good condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.  There is some wear on the surface. This is definitely an important piece of her pottery.

Early San Ildefonso Pottery Innovators -1920-1940

This wide bowl by Maria Martinez is one of her classic pieces in both shape and design.  It was made by Maria Martinez and painted by her daughter-in-law Santana Martinez (the wife of Adam Martinez, Maria’s son).  It is very highly polished and has a glassy surface.  The design is a feather pattern which encircles the shoulder of the jar.  The shape of the bowl is a very traditional one for Maria.  She would often say that this wide shape was made so the bowl could be easily held in both hands.  The deep black firing and the tightly painted designs using the matte clay work perfectly together.  The bowl is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Maria + Santana”.  It is in very good condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.  There is one very small rub on the rim, but otherwise the condition is exceptional, which can also be seen from the bottom of the bowl, which has virtually no wear!

To learn more about Maria’s signatures, click here.

Helen Gutierrez (1935-1993) was a daughter of Isabel Atencio, a sister of Gilbert Atencio and the mother of Geraldine, Carol and Rose Gutierrez. She was known for her traditional San Ildefonso pottery.  This jar is highly polished and painted with a feather pattern.  The design and style are classic for San Ildefonso.  The jar is signed on the bottom in the clay.  It is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.

Tonita Roybal is one of the great innovative names in San Ildefonso pottery.  This is a classic shape with the sharp shoulder.  The sloping area to the neck was painted by her husband, Juan Cruz.  The design is wonderful in the flowing pattern with a cloud design at the top and a water design at the bottom.  However, they are mirror images and the result is a pattern which has a very modern appearance.  The bowl is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Tonita + Juan”.  It is in very good condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.

Early San Ildefonso Pottery Innovators -1920-1940

Tonita Roybal is one of the great innovative names in San Ildefonso pottery.  This is one of her “gunmetal” fired bowl.  The metallic coloration is achieved using a very high fire to heat the bowl and create an intense silver appearance on the surface. This bowl is one of her classic shapes with a sharp shoulder.  The designs are mountain, wind and rain patterns.  Note the delicate lines of the painting on the bowl!  The bowl is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Tonita”.  It is in very good condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.

Early San Ildefonso Pottery Innovators -1920-1940

Jarrod Da has created a distinctive style of painting using pastels for his work. Each piece is hand painted and it is amazing how much detail he is able to achieve in each piece!  His new work is a blend of contemporary themes with San Ildefonso and Pueblo imagery.  This piece is entitled, “Red Hybrid Bee III”.  The painting has two bees painted in red and black with Pueblo designs on the wings . They are flying near pueblo painted flowers and with interspersed geometric shapes.  Jarrod wrote of this piece:

Red Hybrid Bee III was created pondering the modern effect we have on honeybees. This is three of a series of mixed media pieces. The design work is influenced through a mix of traditional San Ildefonso Pueblo design and modern deco influences. The fine detail work is done in India ink. This piece is my ode to saving the honeybee and realizing the crucial role they play in this giant organism we call earth.”

The painting is subtle in color but complex in design.  It comes in a black frame and matted. It is signed, “DA 17”.

Blue Corn is certainly one of the most creative potters of her time with a varied used of clays and firing techniques to create her distinctive pottery.  This is one of her distinctive red pieces. The jar is fully polished red and has a feather pattern painted along the body of the piece.  Around the neck is a triangular mountain design. The jar is painted in a buff-on-red style. The highly polished red is in contrast to the matte painted surface.  The jar was traditionally fired to create the coloration.  The jar is signed in the clay on the bottom, “Blue Corn”.   It is in very good condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.

Desideria Montoya Sanchez was a sister of noted potter Maria Martinez.  She was known for her traditional pottery and use of both classic and innovative designs. This tall jar is a shape that was used by both her and Maria during the 1920’s.  It is a tall shaped jar with a high shoulder.  The jar here is highly polished and has a cloud design painted around the neck and then additional rain and wind designs around the shoulder.  The painted designs here are so bold that they give a very modernistic appearance to the jar. It is in very good condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Desideria”.

Tonita Roybal is one of the great innovative names in San Ildefonso pottery.  This is a classic shape for Tonita, with the low, round shoulder and the turned out rim.  What is unusual is the use of the avanyu or water serpent, as the design.  She painted a variety of designs, but very rarely depicted the water serpent on her pottery. The jar here is fired to a near gunmetal finish and it is delicately painted and beautifully polished.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Tonita”  It is in very good condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.

Early San Ildefonso Pottery Innovators -1920-1940

Isabel Pena was one of the early San Ildefonso potters. This is an exceptional jar by Isabel Pena.  It is one of the only lidded pieces of hers we have come across.  The jar is painted with a mountain step pattern and the lid is also painted.  The jar is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Isabel”.  It is in very good condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.  Isabel Pena was a granddaughter of Cipriana Pena and a daughter of Tonita Pena (ca 1847-1910) who was known for making large storage vessels. Isabel was the wife of Pasqual Martinez. She was also the mother of noted potters Teresita Martinez and Petronella Martinez. Her great-grandson, Elvis Torres continues to make pottery today.

For more information on the Early San Ildefonso Innovators, Click Here.

This is a large bowl by Maximiliana “Anna” Martinez, who was a sister of Maria Martinez.   It is fully polished and painted with water designs around the shoulder. The bowl itself has great coloration with areas which are nearly gunmetal.  The painting is fluid around the entire piece.  It is in very good condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Anna”.

Early San Ildefonso Pottery Innovators -1920-1940

Isabel Pena was one of the early San Ildefonso potters. This is one of the largest of her black-on-black bowls we have seen. It  has a snow pattern as the design.  It is a complex pattern that encompasses the surface of the jar.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Isabel Pena”.  It is in good condition with no cracks, restoration or repair.  There are a few little rubs and a small chip on the inside of the rim.  Isabel Pena was a granddaughter of Cipriana Pena and a daughter of Tonita Pena (ca 1847-1910) who was known for making large storage vessels. Isabel was the wife of Pasqual Martinez. She was also the mother of noted potters Teresita Martinez and Petronella Martinez. Her great-grandson, Elvis Torres continues to make pottery today.

For more information on the Early San Ildefonso Innovators, Click Here.

This bowl is one of the larger bowls we have had  by Juanita and Wo-Peen Gonzales.  It is carved with the cameo style which Juanita learned from Rose Gonzales.  It has a flowing design on the shoulder with rain and lightning designs separated by mountains.  The carving is deep and perfectly fits the shape of the bowl.  It is in very good condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.    The bowl is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Juanita”.   It is great to find one of their pieces in such wonderful condition!

Click here to read more about the “Early San Ildefonso Innovators”

Florence Naranjo is a daughter of noted potters Rosalie & Joe Aguilar and a granddaughter of Susana Aguilar.  This is one of her few polychrome pieces of pottery. The jar is fully painted with black and red rain, cloud and snow patterns on a cream background.  The jar is a classic San Ildefonso water jar shape.  It is signed on the bottom, “Florence Naranjo”.  It is good condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.

Click here to learn more about the Early San Ildefonso Innovators!

Spoken Through Clay

A NEW  RELEASE SPECIAL:  $95.00, including shipping (US)! Check out the new review in the Denver Post!

 Just a few things which make this book unique!

*   The size!  The book is 11.75″ x 14.25″ and weights over 8 pounds!
*  The photography of the pottery is stunning, emphasizing the individual pieces.
*  Each caption is the artist discussing the individual piece on the page.
*  The artist “biographies” are from interviews with the artists and they discuss their art, culture, lives and history.
*  Organization: The book is not organized by pueblo or family, but entails new ways to think about the future of Native pottery.
*  Printing in Italy gives the book very high quality color and paper.
* The photos of the living artists were taken by Will Wilson using a tin-type process. He was a recipient of the 2107 New Mexico Governor’s Award for the Arts in photography!
*  The book features work by more than 30 contemporary potters and more than a dozen important historic potters.
*  There are essays by myself, Peter Held and Eric Dobkin.  They add to the overall understanding of the project a historic perspective.

_____________________________________________

August 18, Pasatiempo Review

“Charles S. King’s new book, Spoken Through Clay: Native Pottery in the Southwest, The Eric S. Dobkin Collection, is spectacularly heavy —which is a problem from a practical standpoint, because once you open it, you won’t want to put it down. With dreamy tintype artist portraits by Diné photographer Will Wilson, dazzlingly crisp images from Addison Doty, and intimate first-person essays written by dozens of artists, the book is a visually delicious, intellectually consuming foray into historic and contemporary Southwestern pottery. In short, prepare to swoon.

“It’s one of the things that makes us who we are. It’s what holds our family together. We are a family of potters. It’s our identity. People don’t realize how much work goes into it just processing the clay and making it. You have to do it with your heart.”—Linda Tafoya-Sanchez

FEATURED ARTISTS Grace Medicine Flower • Dextra Quotskuyva • Autumn Borts-Medlock • Jody Naranjo • Harrison Begay Jr. • Jordan Roller • Sara Fina Tafoya • Lonnie Vigil • Margaret Tafoya • Steve Lucas • LuAnn Tafoya • Loren Ami • Toni Roller • Popovi Da • Linda Tafoya-Sanchez • Mark Tahbo • James Ebelacker• Yvonne Lucas • Jeff Roller • Lisa Holt • Harlan Reano • Nampeyo • Jacquie Stevens • Nathan Youngblood • Jacob Koopee Jr. • Jennifer Moquino • Christopher Youngblood • Maria Martinez • Tony Da • Tammy Garcia • Virgil Ortiz • Joseph Lonewolf • Johnathan Naranjo • Nancy Youngblood • Les Namingha • Russell Sanchez • Christine McHorse • Richard Zane Smith • Rondina Huma • Susan Folwell • Dominique Toya • Jody Folwell

Spoken Through Clay features the pottery of iconic Native American artists from historic potters Nampeyo and Maria Martinez, to contemporary potters Tammy Garcia, Virgil Ortiz, and many others, are featured in a new book published by the Museum of New Mexico Press. Spoken Through Clay: Native Pottery of the Southwest showcases nearly three hundred pottery vessels from the acclaimed Eric S. Dobkin Collection, covering a wide range of mostly Pueblo artists from the Southwest.

“The physical scale of the vessels combined with the depth of the contemporary collection [is] breathtaking,” says author Charles S. King. The book is part of a “transitional process of looking to the clay, the vessel, and the potter’s voice and allowing the pieces to stand on the merit of their artistic integrity.”

The book includes portraits and voices of renowned potters speaking about their artistry and technique, families, culture, and traditions. Many of the artists are connected by Pueblos, generations, or family members. Dynamic color photography captures the depth and dimension of the pieces, while the artists provide an illuminating perspective through narrative captions. Artists, academics, collectors, family members, and gallerists add additional insight about the lives, historical context, and importance of these potters and their work.

SPOKEN THROUGH CLAY Native Pottery of the Southwest The Eric S. Dobkin Collection
By Charles S. King Essay by Peter Held

Artist portraits by Will Wilson
ISBN: 978-0-89013-624-9

352 pages, 320 color plates, 40 artist portraits

Publication Date: August 01, 2017
ABOUT THE AUTHOR Charles S. King is the author of Born of Fire: The Life and Pottery of Margaret Tafoya, The Life and Art of Tony Da, Virgil Ortiz: Revolt 1680/2180, and numerous articles on Pueblo pottery. He has served on boards of art associations, judged pottery at prestigious events, and lectures about the art form. His business King Galleries represents many of today’s leading Native potters and important historic works in clay. Charles lives in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Russell Sanchez (San Ildefonso) and Arthur Lopez (Spanish), have created unique collaborative works for the first time this year.  The vessel was made by Russell and stone polished with a black clay. The wood sections were carved by Arthur.  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 water color pigment.  Natural colored pigments, such as the brown, are derived from black walnut hulls.  Russell uses traditional clay from San Ildefonso, which is then coil built, stone polished and traditionally fired.  These are the time involved and historic foundations for this collaboration.

The jar has a black and red polished surface. The neck and base are polished black and there are very classic San Ildefonso style handles.  The central band is polished with a deep red clay. There are inset bands of turquoise hei-shi beads.  The coloration of the firing of the black is deep and a striking complement to the deep red.

Arthur and Russell said of this jar:

This jar combines to similar concepts, the Immaculate Conception and the pueblo Avanyu.  The vessel is a classic San Ildefonso water jar.  The black, red and tan are representative of the San Ildefonso polychrome pottery.  The jar is a “pot within a pot”, where the outer pot represents the acceptance of the pueblos of Catholicism.  People looked at the religion and not how it was forced on the pueblo people.  The avanyu (water serpent) encircling the back of the jar is representative of the avanyu as a symbol of cleansing.  In a similar manner the wood lid is a representation of the Immaculate Conception.  The painted section is painted in a Spanish style and has baby Jesus and a lamb, representing ‘the Lamb of God’.  So, much as the, “lamb of God washes away the sins of the world”, the avanyu is a cleansing force in the Pueblo world.

This is a charming open bowl by Tonita Roybal, from the 1920’s.  It is either a small plate or a small dish.  It is oval and has a slight rim.  The bowl is painted on the inside with a lightning and cloud pattern.  The piece is polished which creates a strong contrast for the design.  The bowl is signed on the back in the clay, “Tonita”.  It is in very good condition with no cracks, restoration or repair. There are few tiny dings on the rim.  Amazingly, the center of the piece is in excellent condition!

Martha Appleleaf learned to make pottery from her mother, Carmelita Vigil Dunlap. Today she continues to create distinctive pottery with traditional designs.  This is a classic shaped water jar with a sharp shoulder and a micaceous clay rim. The jar has been painted with a green clay slip, which has a very subtle green coloration after the firing. The design is a feather pattern around the shoulder and a prayer feather design around the neck.  Below the shoulder are tadpoles. The jar is signed on the bottom in the clay.

Anita Martinez was a granddaughter of Maria Martinez and a daughter of Santana & Adam Martinez.  This is a classic bowl of hers which is highly polished. It has been fired with sections which have a gunmetal appearance.  The bowl is in very good condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Anita Martinez”.

In the 1950’s Maria Martinez created a series of pieces which were simply stone polished with no design.  As she primarily made the pottery and polished it this was fitting with the other pieces of her career.  This small plate is fully polished on the front and matte on the back.  It is signed in the clay, “Maria Poveka”.  This is a combination of her Anglo and Tewa names.  Her name, “Poveka” means “Water Lilly”.  The plate is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.

This bowl is by Juanita and Wo-Peen Gonzales.  It is carved with the cameo style which Juanita learned from Rose Gonzales.  It has a complicated design with rain and cloud patterns encircling the bowl.  It is beautifully polished and has deep black coloration.  The bowl is in very good condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair and some wear near the base.  The bowl is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Juanita Wo-Peen”.   It is great to find one of their pieces in such wonderful condition!

Click here to read more about the “Early San Ildefonso Innovators”

Tse-Pe Gonzales as a son of noted potter Rose Gonzales.  This seedpot is fully polished and fired brown. The design is a central plant pattern with a fish on either side.  The tails of the fish extend out from the circle of the medallion.  There is a single inset piece of turquoise at the top to represent the water.  The back of the piece is fully polished with no design.  The etching is tight and the stippling of the background is a visual signature to Tse-Pe’s technique.  It is signed on the bottom with Tse-Pe’s hallmark. It is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.

This larger plate by Cavan Gonzales is a beautiful example of both his clay and painting skill.  As a form, many Pueblo potters dislike to create plates, as they break frequently while drying and firing.  Cavan is one of the few who has been making this form most of his career.  This plate is polychrome with a butterfly painted in the center.  There is a checkerboard pattern around the rim of the piece.  Note as well there is a single inset piece of turquoise for the head of the butterfly.  The back of the plate is slipped red and signed by Cavan.

This jar by Juanita Gonzales is classic style of their work.  Juanita learned the cameo style of carving from Rose Gonzales.  The neck of the jar is carved with a rain pattern.  The body of the piece has the clay fully carved away to reveal the encircling avanyu.  The style of the avanyu, with the round incised eye, is very similar to that of Rose Gonzales.  The bottom of the jar is matte.  The contrast of the raised polished surfaces and the surrounding matte areas creates a very striking appearance.  The jar is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Juanita”.  It is in very good condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.

Desideria Montoya Sanchez was a sister of noted potter Maria Martinez.  She was known for her traditional pottery and use of both classic and innovative designs. This bowl is painted with a bird wing pattern.  It is interesting that this design has a Hopi-Tewa style appearance to the design.  Many of the early San Ildefonso potters were very interested in the work of Nampeyo of Hano and incorporated Hopi designs into their work.  The imagery was often stylized, such as the feather pattern at the round end of the wing.  The bowl was fired with to a nearly gunmetal appearance.  It is in very good condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Desideria”.

Dora Tse-Pe learned to make pottery from her mother-in-law, Rose Gonzales.  She is renowned for her beautifully formed and highly polished pottery.  This is one of her classic pieces.  It is a highly polished black bowl which has a sienna rim. The bear lid is coil built and has a ridge so that it sits inside the mouth of the bowl. It is simple and yet a classic for San Ildefonso pottery.  It is signed on the bottom, “Dora of San Ildefonso” and it is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.