Sanchez, Russell – Polychrome Round Box with White Bear Lid, 85 Stones
$ 5,800.00
Russell Sanchez continues to be one of the great innovators in Pueblo pottery. Each piece is perfectly coil-built, stone-polished, and etched. This is a round box with a bear lid. The round shape is one that is seen at San Ildefonso Pueblo as early as the 1920’s. This box has a white polished rim above a band of mica. The main area of the box is polished to a deep red coloration. The box has a large incised bear on one side, and a bear track with corn fields and mountains on the other side. There are rain clouds along the edge with dots representing the rain on the field. The lid has a polished red band on the side, and the top is slipped with mica while the bear is polished white. The box and lid were traditionally fired. The bear has turquoise eyes, while there are larger coral and turquoise insets on the top of the lid. The box itself has a band of coral insets along with turquoise in the clouds and in the bear. The bear on the lid has a very sculptural appearance in its form. The coloration of the white clay with the deep red polished surfaces and coral is striking! His deep red clay is another recent addition to his clay art, starting around 2005. As Russell continues to innovate from historic designs, he says, “Tradition means moving forward and adding to it. You keep moving forward. If we stayed stagnant, we would no longer exist.” The jar is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Russell”. It is exciting to see how this imagery is not ne,w but Russell’s reinterpretation of it both modernizes and revives.
In stock
Russell Sanchez continues to be one of the great innovators in Pueblo pottery. Each piece is perfectly coil-built, stone-polished, and etched. This is a round box with a bear lid. The round shape is one that is seen at San Ildefonso Pueblo as early as the 1920’s. This box has a white polished rim above a band of mica. The main area of the box is polished to a deep red coloration. The box has a large incised bear on one side, and a bear track with corn fields and mountains on the other side. There are rain clouds along the edge with dots representing the rain on the field. The lid has a polished red band on the side, and the top is slipped with mica while the bear is polished white. The box and lid were traditionally fired. The bear has turquoise eyes, while there are larger coral and turquoise insets on the top of the lid. The box itself has a band of coral insets along with turquoise in the clouds and in the bear. The bear on the lid has a very sculptural appearance in its form. The coloration of the white clay with the deep red polished surfaces and coral is striking! His deep red clay is another recent addition to his clay art, starting around 2005. As Russell continues to innovate from historic designs, he says, “Tradition means moving forward and adding to it. You keep moving forward. If we stayed stagnant, we would no longer exist.” The jar is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Russell”. It is exciting to see how this imagery is not ne,w but Russell’s reinterpretation of it both modernizes and revives.
