Tammy Garcia is known for her contemporary designs and use of traditional clay. This jar incorporates her evolving style of carving her pieces in various layers in the clay.  There are two birds, one on each side. They are carved into a “frame’.  Note the area around each bird, which is rounded out and not flat.  This is a “pillow effect” which gives added dimension to the birds, which are polished. The stippling is slipped with two different colors of clay.  Separating each of the framed medallions are flowers.  There are 27 carved and polished flowers on this piece.  Think that each flower is carved into four sections and each section is polished…so that makes 108 different sections of flowers! WOW!!!  There is a lot going on for such a small piece and the round shape and short neck simply add to the overall impact.  Tammy has won numerous awards for her pottery for nearly the past 30 years.  Her creative work in clay, glass and bronze is found in museums worldwide.  It is exciting to see how her contemporary work continues to move Pueblo pottery forward with its innovations.  The jar is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Tammy Garcia”.  She has said of this style of work:

“[The birds] are each placed within framed areas, which adds dimension, and the stippling adds another texture. Frames and texture along with various levels of carving depths are something I’m passionate about. The framing of the imagery was inspired by the elaborately carved frames on paintings.” Tammy Garcia, Spoken Through Clay