This is a figurative clay dinosaur by Jennifer Tafoya.  Jennifer has created a unique group of dinosaur figures and vessels for our show, “Land of the Lost”.  This figure is a Stegosaurus.  She has used a brown clay slip that is polished on the sides.  The scale plates on the back are all part of the piece and are incised and the back is slipped with green.  The side of the figure is fully etched with tight geometric patterns.  Take a closer look and there are vertical sections with white clay slip and small areas of blue.  It is visually striking as they fit the size of the stegosaurus.  There is an additional micaceous clay slip on the botttom.   The colors are all derived from natural clay slips.  The piece is signed on the bottom, “Jennifer Tafoya”.

Jennifer says of her dinosaur figures

“I have always been a huge fan of dinosaurs.  I didn’t have a bunch of dolls, I had dinosaurs.  If my mother would give me a Barbie doll, I’d give it to my sister.  I think working with animals that lived millions of years ago is fascinating and it’s fun learning how they lived. “