Chase “Kahwinhut” Earles is one of the few Caddo potters working today.  As of late, his work finds inspiration in the world of Indigenous Futurism, Star Wars, and historic Caddo vessels and designs.  Each piece is hand-built and then incised with complex designs.  This piece is entitled, “Tay’sha Ku’nay: Gourd Friend”.  It is inspired by BB8, while the traditional water jar has waves as designs.  Chase wrote, “I saw R2D2 as a healer, BB8 as a trusted companion whose entire life is a constant cycle like that of the rolling water of Caddo knowledge. It is adorned by our Caddo iconographic and design language as if they were born into that world or one that will be.”  The piece has a removable antenna, and it is signed on the bottom.  It has a second place ribbon from the 2024 Gallup Intertribal Ceremonials.

The Caddo were a tribal group throughout the Oklahoma, Texas, and Louisiana areas.  Chase draws inspiration from the ancient Caddo pieces and yet they are not replicas.  The connection in the ancient work is in the clay, firing, and shapes.  He is primarily self-taught both as a potter and in his research of the Caddo ceramic past.  He has sought out the clay sources and each piece is coil built.  They are then slipped with a clay and mussel shell mixture and then burnished three times.  The result is a shiny surface with flecks of shell reflecting light.  Each piece is then pit-fired, which not only hardens the clay but gives them fire clouds and color variations on the surface. After they are fired Chase etches into the surface of the clay to create the intricate designs.  The delicate designs are almost a surprise, considering the hardness of the clay after the firing.