Black Carved Avanyu Jar with Turquoise Gemstone Eye [SOLD]

This excellent black pottery bowl with an Avanyu water serpent encircling the mid-section was made by Dora Tse-Pé in 1986. The Avanyu wraps around the body of the bowl so that its head overlaps its tail. The Avanyu is simple and elegant in Art Deco style with only the outline of the serpent delineated without any embellishments. This early work by Dora is signed Dora of San Ildefonso and dated "1986" on the underside.

Dora Tse-Pé (1939-2022), from San Ildefonso Pueblo, is recognized as a master potter, and was awarded the title Master of Indian Market. She was a perfectionist in her art career. She achieved a beautifully smooth burnish and an exceptional black firing to her pottery.

Dora was born at Zia Pueblo, the daughter of Candelaria Gachupin and granddaughter of Rosalie Toribio, both of whom "taught her the sacred and spiritual significance of the clay, of Mother Earth, Father Sun, and of the life-giving water. Her mother and grandmother made sure she understood the importance of these forces in creating pottery. Like Rosalie Aguilar and Rose Gonzales a generation before, Dora married into San Ildefonso. In 1961, she married Tse-Pé, a fine potter. His mother was Rose Gonzales, who also had married into San Ildefonso, but from San Juan Pueblo." -Schaaf 2000

Dora is known to have consistently achieved a beautifully smooth burnish and an exceptional black firing to her pottery. This bowl is an excellent example of her exceptional design capability in using less rather than more. It is the simple artistic design of the Avanyu that makes this bowl such an attraction.

Condition: very good condition

Provenance: this Black Carved Avanyu Jar with Turquoise Gemstone Eye is from the estate of a resident of Santa Fe who purchased it in July 1989 from a Chicago Dealer of American Indian Art.

Recommended Reading: Fourteen Families in Pueblo Pottery by Rick Dillingham

Reference: Pueblo Indian Pottery: 750 Artist Biographies by Gregory Schaaf. 2000.

TAGS: Popovi Da, Tony Da, Southwest Indian Pottery, San Ildefonso Pueblo, Contemporary, Zia Pueblo, Dora Tse-Pé