Frances Suina Female Storyteller with Five Children

This piece by Frances Naranjo Suina (1902-1992) is a classic mid-to-late 20th-century Cochiti Pueblo polychrome storyteller figurine.The primary adult figure is depicted seated with an open mouth — symbolizing the oral tradition of passing down stories, songs, and history. Five small children are positioned around the storyteller: two perched on the shoulders and three clustered across the lap.

Traditional Cochiti polychrome techniques were used throughout. The figure features standard natural slip colors, including white/cream, black wild-spinach (guaco) paint, and warm red/orange clay accents for the clothing, hair ties, and moccasins. Suina's figurative work is known for its expressive, slightly stylized facial features, bold profile noses, and playful positioning of the children.

Born at San Ildefonso Pueblo, Frances Suina moved to Cochiti Pueblo following her marriage and became one of Cochiti's prominent early 20th-century figurative potters. She was active from the 1930s through the 1980s and was instrumental in teaching the craft to her family. Notably, her son, Louis Naranjo, became famous in his own right for his Cochiti bear storytellers.

Condition: Visual inspection shows light surface wear typical of vintage Cochiti pottery, including minor paint loss/flaking along high-contact points (such as the upper shoulders, chest, and head). The original slip and black pigment retain their matte, unglazed appearance, consistent with traditionally outdoor-fired pottery.

Provenance: this Frances Suina Female Storyteller with Five Children is from the collection of a client from California

Recommended Reading: The Pueblo Storyteller: Development of a Figurative Ceramic Tradition by Barbara Babcock Ph.D.

TAGS: Cochiti Pueblo, Storyteller figurines, Louis Naranjo, Virginia A. Naranjo; Pauline Naranjo, San Ildefonso Pueblo, pottery, Francis Suina