Original Taos Pueblo Painting of Buffalo Dance and Drummers [SOLD]

This original painting was created by Juanito Concha, a Taos Pueblo artist.  It is a lively scene, with four figures performing a ceremonial dance.  On the left, two Buffalo Dancers move gracefully in unison, wearing elaborate headdresses and holding arrows in their hands.  On the right, two musicians face the viewer directly, playing their drums and opening their mouths wide in song.  

There is no background or environment, leaving the viewer nothing to explore beyond the four figures.  Fortunately, though, these figures are deep and alluring, so there is much to admire within the piece.  The buffalo dancers’ movements are depicted accurately, and there is much depth and detail in the musicians’ faces.  Concha’s colors are bright and attractive, too, which seems appropriate for such an energetic image.  We hope to find more work from this artist in the future.

The painting is not signed, but it is marked in pencil on verso: “Taos Indian Buffalo Dance, made by Juanito Concha, Taos Indian Art, Taos NM, Box 353.” A photograph of this text is included with the piece.

Juanito (John) Concha (1873 - 1973) was a Taos Pueblo painter.  Little has been published regarding Concha’s life and work, but he is included in Jeanne O. Snodgrass’ American Indian Painters A Biographical Directory, which notes that Concha exhibited and placed works in a few public collections.  According to Snodgrass, “the artist was still painting in 1950, although his work was not readily available to the public.”

Condition: very good condition with a few slight discolorations

Provenance: this Original Taos Pueblo Painting of Buffalo Dance and Drummers is from a private Tennessee collection

Reference: American Indian Painters A Biographical Directory, 1968, Jeanne O. Snodgrass

Relative Links: Taos Pueblo, Native American Painting, Juanito Concha, Taos Pueblo Painter