Original Painting “Antelope Hunt” [SOLD]

Ignacio Moquino was born in 1917 at Zia Pueblo and died in 1982. He left school after his father’s death to care for his family. While working part-time as a shoemaker, he began his art career by designing and painting pictures of various tribal costumes. He then turned his interests to silversmithing. He later returned to the Santa Fe Indian School for two years’ graduate work in art under Dorothy Dunn and Geŕonima Montoya. 

Moquino demonstrated care and tenderness in portraying this antelope hunt in that he concealed the kill of one of the animals behind a large plant stem (see image below).   And the hunter has not hit his mark in the other animal.  There is a delicacy in the painting achieved mostly by use of very large plants to distract the viewer from the actual action.  The palette is strong in intensity but mellow in color.  Moquino was an excellent artist and this painting confirms that.

A tag on verso states INDIAN MARKET of the Covelo Indian Community, Golden Gate International Exposition.  This is to certify that this painting “Antelope Hunt” was made by Ignacio Moquino of the Zia (indistinguishable), Indian Arts and Crafts Board, U. S. Department of Interior.   (The Golden Gate International Exposition was held in 1939). 

Condition: appears to be in excellent condition.  Has recently been framed using archival materials.

Provenance: from a client from Tucson whose mother had it hanging in her home until she recently moved to an assisted living center.

Recommended Reading: Southwest Indian Painting—a changing art by Clara Lee Tanner

Image of Ignacio Moquino painting mural for the U.S. Office of Indian Affairs at the Exposition, 1939. Unknown Source. Original caption: 01/07/1939-SAN FRANCISCO, CA: Joe Evans Duran (RT) and Ignacio Moquino (LT) working on murals for the Indian room of the new Federal ...

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