This large seedpot by Joseph Lonewolf is from 1987 and it is highly polished and fired black.  The design has eight Mimbres figures. They are playing a game with rackets and a ball.  Each figure is in a different position and each has a different design on their kilts.  There is a lot of motion and movement in the piece.  Note as well the background which has been more deeply incised and has a textural feel.  The base of the seedpot is fully polished.  There is the 1987 symbol, the Propeller of Life, along with a realistic butterfly.  All the colorations are from natural clay slips.  It is signed on the bottom, “Joseph Lonewolf”.  It is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.  Joseph Lonewolf said of his use of Mimbres imagery in his pottery:

“I regard the Mimbres as my ancestors. Though I refine their designs, each design must have meaning for me. In my dreams I see how to use the design, how to make the pot happen. Then when I work the clay, everything flows. Some people wonder why I keep changing styles, colors, forms. But I can’t just sit there and make pots. Like any artist, I must try different things, different techniques. I must meet the challenge with my hands. The patterns and the methods I see in my mind during my dreams.” —Joseph Lonewolf, 1974, Spoken Through Clay