Namingha, Les – “Winter Snow, Spring Grow” Contemporary Jar

7"w x 7"h

$ 3,800.00

This is a very detailed jar by Les Namingha.  It is part of his “Layers” series he has been working on over the past several years.  The jar has a round body and an elongated neck.  This is always a great shape for his pottery to show off the most design. One side of the jar has a black-and-white checkerboard snow pattern.  It is the migration of the birds away in winter and it is painted over traditional style Sikyatki and Hopi bird designs.  The opposite side has Les’s stylized migration designs painted with white angular lines and blue swirling lines.  There are numerous Hopi-style birds swirling around the surface of the piece and painted in bright colorations.  The colors are the arrival of Spring and a bit of optimism of a return to normalcy.  Les is masterful with his use of color and the impact on this piece is definitely one that brings a simile to your face, like walking out into a freshly blooming garden!  The bottom is brown with colored geometrics. This is how Les depicts the landscape as if the birds are looking down on it from the air.   It is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Les Namingha  2021”.  Les says of his pieces which have layering:

“The concept of layering is inherent in our mortal journey. As time moves forward, our memories become layered. Some memories remain vibrant, others faint or hazy. Yet others, obscure or even hidden. Likewise, our experiences, words, works, emotions, prayers, and songs build up in layers creating our existence. In turn, our social interactions become exercises in layering. We see this in evidence with street art or graffiti writing where layers of thought and a desire to express a “proof of existence” create tapestries of color and marks. Blending, covering, harmonizing, dissonance, disappearing. This concept of layering is the idea behind Urban Polychrome and other works in the Urban Series.”  Les Namingha