LuAnn Tafoya is a daughter of Margaret Tafoya and is known for her large, highly polished pottery.  This new jar is a classic shape for LuAnn’s pottery with the low shoulder and the elongated neck.  For LuAnn, it is the perfect surface to show off her expertise in polishing!  The jar is deeply carved with a lighting and cloud pattern. The carving is deep and precise.  The recessed area surrounding the carving is filled in using white or cream-colored clay.   However, it is the polishing that is stunning. The jar is polished a deep red coloration.  LuAnn is famous for her stone polished surfaces and that is easily seen why on this jar!  The jar was traditionally fired  The coloration is beautiful and the shape of his piece is a great example of her skill, creativity, and commitment to traditional Santa Clara pottery.  The jar is signed on the bottom in the clay, “LuAnn Tafoya”.

“When I was twelve, I remember one Saturday morning my mom said, “We are going to polish today.” I looked at her, and I said, “Polish today? I’ve never polished a pot.” She put up a table, and I sat on one side and she sat on the other side. She started putting the clay slip on some small pieces. As soon as it was ready for me to polish, she would hand me the small pot. She kept putting the slip onto six small bowls. It was like a rotation of working on it. After she put the slip on then I would start polishing, so we keep on going. That’s where I remember starting to work on the pots.”  LuAnn Tafoya, Spoken Through Clay