This is a complex jar by Dolores Curran.  She continues to create intricately incised and painted pottery.  Her husband, Alvin Curran, inspired her to create these red polychrome incised and painted.  He was known for his incised San Juan-style pottery in the late 1990s.  This jar has a round body and short neck. The neck and base are both fully polished.  There is a deeply carved cloud band around the top of the shoulder and note the tiny painted rain designs on the neck.  On the body of the jar, it is incised with feathers and rainclouds in two areas.  Below them are stylized birds.  Separating the clouds are larger old-style butterflies that are colorfully painted with various red and tan clay slips.  There are also tiny dragonflies!  The jar has a lid that is also polished and has a matte mesa as the finial. It is a perfect complement to the shape and design of the jar.  Using a larger vessel allows Dolores to create more subtlety in the colors.  All the colorations are from natural clay slips.  It is an extraordinary amount of time to create intricate pieces in design and use the various clay additions.   The jar is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Dolores Curran”.

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