Stunning!  This long neck jar by Russell Sanchez is fired a gunmetal black.  Russell’s recent work is a modern take on historic San Ildefonso pottery.  This jar is incised in 14 horizontal bands with a checkerboard design. The designs alternate between matte and micaceous areas.  Believe it or not this is very difficult to carve the horizontal lines into the clay and have them all turn out even! As well on this piece, note how the size of the square is smaller at the neck and then larger at the shoulder, matching the shape of the jar.  Separating each of the 14 bands of the checkerboard are 116 strands of hematite hei-shi beads!  In each of the micaceous squares, there is an inset piece of turquoise.  Russell said he doesn’t name his pieces but the blue of the turquoise and the silvery black of the firing made him think of blue corn.  The lid has a sculptural bear and inset turquoise stones and hei-shi beads.  While the stone are added after the firing, the jar and lid were fired to a silvery gunmetal coloration.  Russell is one of the only Pueblo potters working today who is able to achieve this with consistency!  This may seem to be a simple design at first glance and yet it is probably one of the more precision challenging pieces Russell has made in a while, as if any line was not perfectly even, it would throw off the design.  The jar and the lid are both signed on the bottom in the clay.  A wonderful traditional and yet very modern piece!  The jar and lid are signed on the bottom, “Russell”.  The jar won “Bet of Pottery” at the 2022 Gallup Ceremonials.