This is a spectacular new swirl melon bowl by Nancy Youngblood.  This is the first time we had a piece this size in this style from Nancy! The bowl is deeply carved with 32 melon ribs that extend from the rim to the base.  Note on the top of the bowl how each rib is delineated and carved to a separate point!  It’s incredible that they don’t chip or crack when she is carving or polishing them.  What makes the shape work is is the ribs seem to fold around the piece so that the shape remains visible but there is an unexpected fluidity and movement.  This is the difficulty but the strength of this piece is that it remains in perfect balance. Thirty-two ribs encircle the piece.  They are carved into the clay and then each is stone polished.  Consider that each rib has two “sides” to be polished and the surface area of the piece is about double its size!   Nancy said of the “slant swirl” style of her pottery:

“My slant swirl starts on the left and goes halfway around the pot. Half of the slant goes to the center part of the pot, and the other half goes to the other half of the pot. If you divide it up, this whole swirl will go halfway around the piece. I’d never seen anybody do a slant like that before. There’s a formula to doing it. It’s hard to explain how I do it, unless you see it. If you get distracted and you just move that line over just a little, it throws your whole design off. It can’t be even a fraction off.”  Nancy Youngblood, Spoken Through Clay

As well, note the depth of the carving on this piece.  To fully polish this piece takes an extraordinary amount of time.  Consider that each rib has two “sides” to be polished and the surface area of the piece is about double its size!  The bowl was traditionally fired a glassy black.  The last photos are ones that she took of the firing process.  The results are stunning with a glassy surface, angled to reflect the light.  Nancy has won numerous awards for her melon bowls and this is undoubtedly iconic of her style.  Most recently she won the 2018 “Best of Pottery” at Santa Fe Indian Market.  This bowl is signed on the bottom in the clay, “Nancy Youngblood, 2024”.  A piece of history in clay!