Original Painting of Two Zuni Pueblo Men by Percy Sandy [SOLD]

This original painting was created by Zuni Pueblo artist Percy Sandy, or “Kai-Sa”.  Sandy’s subjects are a pair of men inside a pueblo home.  Objects and clothing depict elements of other pueblos and not just his native Zuni.  One man kneels, playing a large drum. He is wearing a sash and black kilt or skirt that was woven by men at the pueblo.  The other sits on a small stool in front of two large pottery bowls full of white and blue cornmeal.  This was because of women grinding corn in the milling boxes with mano and metate.  A mano, a smooth hand-held stone, is used against a metate, typically a large stone with a depression or bowl. The movement of the mano against the metate consists of a circular, rocking or chopping grinding motion using one or both hands.  Also, a half dozen rattles hang from an antler attached to the wall.  A nicho in another wall holds two small pieces of pottery.  Perhaps this is depicting the result of a corn grinding session or ceremony.  Any ceremony of this type would be rare for an outsider to witness let alone see in a painting.

Sandy’s work here is loose and natural.  He chose bright colors, and balanced them out by using a wispy, nearly translucent application.  The blacks and blues are bold and strong; the remaining colors are soft.  All of this sits well atop the crisp white paper.  Looking around the painting, the viewer will find a variety of designs both recognizable and unique.  Kiva step and sun designs appear, as do other motifs that are likely the artist’s own creations.  This is a sweet and unique painting from one of the few painters linked to Zuni pueblo.

The painting is signed Kai-Sa in the lower left.  It is framed under a gray mat in a thin yellow frame.

Percy Tsisete Sandy (1918-1974) Kai-Sa - Red Moon was born at Zuni Pueblo in 1918. He later moved from Zuni to Taos, due to internal conflicts connected to his depiction of sensitive religious subjects. He died in Taos in 1974.  Kai-Sa attended elementary and secondary schools of the village of Zuni, then went on to Santa Fe to take a year’s postgraduate work in art at the Santa Fe Indian School. Kai-Sa was surely influenced while at the Indian School in Santa Fe, whether by artists he encountered there or by paintings he saw there.  Navajo (Diné) influence is seen in some of his paintings, and the influence of Taos artist Pop Chalee is evident in some of his works. He has used Hopi and Rio Grande Puebloan styles as well as Navajo (Diné) and Apache.

Condition: exceptionally good condition

Provenance: this Original Painting of Two Zuni Pueblo Men by Percy Sandy is from a collection in Colorado

Recommended Reading: SOUTHWEST INDIAN PAINTING a changing art by Clara Lee Tanner