Lonewolf, Joseph – Mimbres Insects Seedpot (1982)

1.5"w x 1.75"h

$ 1,400.00

This seedpot by Joseph Lonewolf is from 1982 and it is highly polished and fired red.  The design has six different Mimbres insects as the design.  There are a bee, butterfly, beetle, mosquito and two others.  Each is etched into the clay and then their bodies consist of additional designs.  All the various colors are derived from natural clay slips.  There are three different green clays, blue and white.  Near the base is the yearly symbol for 1982, which is a “+”.   The piece is very highly polished and intricately designed.  It is signed on the bottom in the clay.  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

“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