Lois Gutierrez is one of the few Santa Clara potters who continues to create traditional polychrome pottery.  Each of the various colors is derived from natural clay slips.  They are then painted onto the vessel and note that there are more than 3 different clay colors, which makes it “polychrome”. This jar is a classic water jar shape with a low shoulder and a slightly turned out neck.  The neck of the jar is fully painted with turtles surrounded by an avanyu and a rainbow design.  Check out the detail in the painted designs and I think I can count over six colors!  Separating the two sections with the turtles are elongated rain cloud and rain designs. Below the shoulder is a very traditional style representation of rain and rain clouds.  The jar is traditionally fired, which adds to the complexity of the overall process!  Note near the base it has been slipped with a deep red clay.  Interestingly, the deep red is not polished and so has some texture.  This harkens to early polychrome pottery when a band of red clay slip would be applied below the shoulder wit a textural feel.  The jar is signed on the bottom “Lois”.