Rafael Medina (1929-1990s) of Zia Pueblo was known for painting in the typical traditional flat style. He received his education at the Zia Day School at Zia Pueblo, as well as the Albuquerque Indian School. He also studied under the stewardship of Velino Shije Herrera, Jose Rey Toledo and Geronima Montoya at the Santa Fe Indian School.

His influences were varied and his work is reflective of that. Medina’s son, Marcellus, in a 1995 interview, said:

“And again, a lot of [painting styles] are brought here and there from other pueblos. And a lot of influences came from the Apaches and the Navajos. The Quincy Tahoma style of the horses, the Navajos riding on horses. My father took some of that style and used it in his own paintings, too. You borrow a little bit here and you borrow a little there, then you put your own ideas, your own talents and whatever personal experience you had as a little boy growing up to a young man, and as an artist you take all that and you put it into the painting. That's how my father taught himself...” (Wyckoff, p. 180)

Medina had many achievements throughout his career, including a solo exhibition at the Arizona State Museum, University of Arizona, Tucson. Among his numerous accolades came awards from the Heard Museum Guild Indian Fair and Market, Phoenix, Arizona (1969); the Inter-Tribal Indian Ceremonials, Gallup, New Mexico (1970); the Philbrook Art Center Annual Indian Art Exhibition, Tulsa, Oklahoma (1966), Grand Awards from the same exhibition in 1970 and 1972; and two first prize awards from annual Scottsdale National Indian Art Exhibition, Scottsdale, Arizona (1967 and 1971). His work also resides in many prestigious public collections, including the National Museum of the American Indian of the Smithsonian in Washington, D.C.

In this painting, Medina represents a typical Zia dancer, perhaps in the midst of a planting dance, as can be evidenced by one of his pieces found in Clara Lee Tanner’s Southwest Indian Painting: A Changing Art (p. 160). As was typical of his style, the colors in this painting are true to life.

Condition: This piece is in excellent original condition and is framed and matted in a nice wood frame with complementary colors. It is signed and dated ’56 at lower right.

Provenance: ex. coll. California Native American painting collector