“Santa Clara Corn Dance” by Pablita Velarde

This painting is an elaborate one of the Corn Dance celebrated at Santa Clara Pueblo. Pablita completed this one prior to 1960. There are 16 participants in the dance scene. In the front, she placed two cavorting Koosa clowns. From the large male figure in the lower center, the other dancers follow in a curve and slowly turn from facing away to facing forward as they approach the front of the painting. This provides an excellent opportunity to witness the clothing in front and back views. This is an extraordinary and elaborate painting by Pablita Velarde.

When Pablita was painting using casein pigments, she produced more elaborate and meaningful paintings of significant ceremonial functions. When she painted with handmade mineral earth pigments, her paintings became less elaborate and inclusive because of the enormous effort to select and prepare the paints from minerals.

This elaborate casein painting was loaned to the Palm Springs Desert Museum, Palm Springs, California, by the owners for display in an exhibit of 44 of Pablita's paintings in 1965. It appeared in the museum's exhibit catalog in position #42. The small tag with number 42 is still attached to the lower right corner of the glass. The exhibit opened at the museum on November 10, 1965 and closed on December 5, 1965. This painting was on loan and not for sale at that time. Now it is available. A facsimile of the catalog page showing a listing of the 44 paintings is shown below.

Condition: appears to be in original condition but has not been inspected out of the frame

Provenance: this "Santa Clara Corn Dance" by Pablita Velarde is from a client of Adobe Gallery

Recommended Reading: PABLITA VELARDE, HELEN HARDIN, MARGARET BAGSHAW: The Three Books

TAGS: Native American Paintings, Santa Clara Pueblo, Tonita Peña, watercolor, Helen Hardin, Navajo Nation, Pablita Velarde, Margarete Bagshaw