Shawna Garcia-Rustin (b.1969) is from Acoma Pueblo.  Patrick Rustin (b. 1970) is Apache from the San Carlos Reservation.  He began making pottery in 1991 and created pieces with nearly paper-thin walls.  During their time together, they won numerous awards for their pottery. This is an unusual jar that is coil-bult and VERY thin walled.  The piece has a round body, and below the shoulder, it is painted with an “op-art”style rain design that gets smaller as it nears the base.  Above the shoulder are 36 feathers that are impressed into the clay, giving them a sculptural appearance and creating shadows in the design.  The neck is sculpted with two pieces of clay that extend up from the body of the jar and fold over one another!  Amazing!!! It has additional rain designs.  It is this creative work that made their pottery so famous in the 1990s.  The piece is highly detailed and striking in person as well, the piece feels like it is paper thin!  The jar is from around 1998 and it is signed, “Garcia-Rustin”.  It is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration, or repair.

Brand

Garcia, Shana (b.1969)

Shana Garcia

Shana Garcia-Rustin (b.1969) is from Acoma Pueblo, Red Corn & Sun Clan. She is a great-granddaughter of Syme & Santana Sanchez and daughter of Elliott Garcia & Beatrice Garcia. Shana collaborated with Patrick Rustin and they are known for their thin wall pottery. She then self-taught and has mastered the technique of each new piece on her own as Shana Garcia.  She is known for her contemporary jars with bird wing patterns. The sculptured swirls of clay are formed into Kiva steps and overall the imagery represents birds flying over the steps. Each piece is coil built and painted with Yucca brushes.