Mary and Leonard Trujillo Male Storyteller with Two Children

In this storyteller figurine the main figure wears a traditional black hat trimmed with a natural buckskin/leather hatband tied at the back, tucked with small accent feathers. His shirt features classic Cochiti four-petal flower/floral designs in black pigment over a light cream slip. The back of the shirt and both sleeves are beautifully rendered in the floral pattern. 

He holds two children on his lap, who are actively listening to the story. One boy has his hands over both eyes as if terrified of the story. The other boy has his hand over one ear. 

The figures are painted in traditional natural mineral and plant slips (red clay, white/cream slip, and wild spinach black slip) with detailed red-topped moccasins.

The bottom of the figurine is signed Mary and Leonard Trujillo, Cochiti Pueblo.

Mary Tapia Trujillo (1937-2021), the daughter of José and Leonidas Cata Tapia, was originally from Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo. Mary was mentored by her mother, who was an excellent San Juan Pueblo potter. When she married Leonard Trujillo, she moved to Cochiti and lived there the remainder of her life. Mary soon switched from San Juan style pottery to Cochiti style, under the tutelage of Helen Cordero, her mother-in-law. Mary first made pottery figurines in the early 1980s. 

Leonard Trujillo (1936-2017) was the adopted son of Helen Cordero. There is very little published information revealing Leonard's contributions to the figurines that bear Mary's and his name. Most likely, he painted some of the figurines and probably handled the firing processes. He certainly was involved in gathering clay and processing it for use in forming the figurines.

Mary and Leonard Trujillo were among the premier figurine potters at Cochiti Pueblo. Very few potters attempt large figurines anymore, but the Trujillos did — and they did a fine job at it. They had been a pottery making team since the 1980s.

Cochiti Pueblo is the birthplace of the modern Pueblo storyteller figure, pioneered by Helen Cordero in 1964. Mary and Leonard Trujillo continued this rich tradition using natural clays and traditional firing methods, capturing the warmth and community spirit inherent to Native American oral history.

Condition: very good condition

Provenance: this Mary and Leonard Trujillo Male Storyteller with Two 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: Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo, Cochiti Pueblo, Helen Cordero, Geraldine Trujillo, Southwest Indian Pottery, Mary and Leonard Trujillo