This Colophon print was printed from the original woodblock hand-carved by Gustave Baumann (1881-1971).  None of the prints in Colophon were ever signed in pencil, but this one does include Baumann's initials and his monogram cypher of a hand palm in a heart in the lower left corner.  No other editions of this woodcut were ever issued.

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Known for breaking down natural shapes into geometric patterns of line and color, Kenneth Adams became the last and youngest member of the Taos Society of Artists. In contrast to the other members, whose work was grounded in late 19th-Century academic principles, he was a contemporary realist, deeply influenced by Cubist experiments of the French artist, Cezanne, and American modernist, Andrew Dasburg. Adams was a key figure in New Mexico art circles and bridged the "old guard" artists and new arrivals.

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Earrings of silver loops and silver balls are one of the oldest style made and worn by Navajo men.  Curtis photographs of Navajo men documented their use.  Generally they were comprised of one look and one silver ball.  This set, however, is more elaborate.

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These charming earrings, made by an unknown Navajo jeweler, were constructed from silver wire for the spider's legs and a small silver strip for the bezel that secures the turquoise stone.  The Southwest Indian Jewelry earrings are fitted for pierced ears.

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Mostly, this artist is known to collectors as Percy Sandy or Kai-Sa, but Sandy is a corruption of his name, which is Tsisete.  Generally, however, he signed Percy Sandy or Kai-Sa.  He was born at Zuni Pueblo in 1918 and attended elementary and secondary schools in Zuni.  He attended Santa Fe Indian School to do postgraduate work.  He later moved from Zuni to Taos where he died in 1974.

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Chile bowls have their start in life as any other pottery bowl-that is they have a clay bottom formed in a puki and side walls that grow upward one coil at a time.  Their walls are scraped and sanded and eventually painted with a design of the choice of the potter or a design fostered by tradition.  The best view of a bowl is from the side at a slight angle so one can appreciate the decorated exterior and have a glimpse of the interior below the rim.  The interior of a utilitarian bowl is not decorated but the patina developed over years or decades of use is worth viewing.

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   Santo Domingo members are known as being the most aggressive traders in a pueblo that otherwise is considered very conservative.  Santo Domingo men boarded the trains that passed the pueblo daily, starting in 1880, to sell pottery being made by the female family members.  Sales such as these provided funds for the purchase of supplies and foods from stores or the trading post.  The leaders at the pueblo tolerated the men selling pottery to outsiders but frowned upon and discouraged the women from dealing with outsiders.  The elders also forbade the sale of other pueblo items such as costuming or clothing used in dance celebrations.

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Before 1850, the pottery of Santo Domingo and Cochiti Pueblos, two Keresan-speaking groups, was indistinguishable.  It was virtually the same and was generally referred to as Kiua Polychrome.  With the arrival of the transcontinental rail line in 1880, the similarity began to diverge.  Cochiti, more than 16 miles from the rail line, and Santo Domingo, adjacent to the rail line, began to diverge in pottery styles.  Cochiti retained its traditions and Santo Domingo began to respond to the needs of the outside world.

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Many collectors enjoy adding pottery to their collection if it evidences ethnographic use, that is they want an item that was actually used at the pueblo before being sold to an outsider.  Many historic jars and dough bowls were used at the pueblo before leaving for the consumer market, but very little contemporary pottery falls into that category.  The exception is small serving bowls.  Many chile bowls that were used extensively or minimally at the pueblo from the last half of the 20^thcentury eventually appear on the commercial market.  Perhaps that is because replacing a small bowl for pueblo use is easier that replacing a water jar or dough bowl or perhaps it is because such small bowls are more affordable.

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Tina Garcia was a granddaughter of Severa Tafoya (1890-1973), who was a sister of Van Gutierrez of Lela and Van fame.  Tina's mom, Lydia Tafoya, was from Santa Clara Pueblo and her father, Santiago Garcia, from Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo.  Tina sometimes signed her pottery with the names of both pueblos.

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Joy Navasie is among the most famous of Hopi-Tewa potters. She learned the skill from her famous mother, Paqua Naha, the first Frog Woman, who had developed white-slipped pottery in the mid-1950s. Joy Navasie picked up the tradition and continued it until her retirement in 1995. Her daughters are now continuing the tradition.

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After the arrival of the railroad in the American Southwest, Fred Harvey opened a chain of hotels along the route and marketed these places as exotic destinations. The art and architecture of these hotels were intended to reflect the vision Harvey had created as typically "Southwestern." The souvenirs sold at his restaurants and hotels were made to appeal to the esthetic of the traveler. Small items which were easy to carry were most popular.

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Letter openers were popular items for tourists traveling along the Atchison Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad in the mid-20^th Century. Some featured fancy designs that the Fred Harvey encouraged his artists to make. Others were the creative expressions of the individual. Traditionally Navajo silversmiths used silver to highlight the beauty and radiance of an individual stone.

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The Atchison Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad, also known as the Santa Fe Railroad, arrived in New Mexico in 1880.  Shortly after, the Fred Harvey Company set up hotels at various locations along the route and promoted the American Southwest as an exotic destination. The company sold handcrafted souvenirs made by the local Native American people. Textiles, pottery, baskets and silverwork were sold in gift shops in the hotels and restaurants.  This enterprise provided new opportunities for the indigenous people to make a living.

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Tony Da started his art career as a painter at a very young age and continued painting throughout high school and afterwards.  It was not until he lived with his Grandmother, Maria Martinez, that he became a potter.  He moved in with Maria in 1966 and began the process of making pottery under her tutelage.  His timing was perfect, as the 1960s was a period of great interest in pueblo pottery.

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Crucita Gonzales Calabaza (1921-1999) Blue Corn was one of the greatest ceramists of all time. She made pottery for over 60 years. Her house was located across the plaza from that of Maria Martinez but there was no competition between the two artisans. She was one of the most honored of 20^th-century potters. She received the 1981 New Mexico Governor's Award (New Mexico's highest artistic award!) and she was acclaimed for her artistic accomplishments in the Wall Street Journal and in AMEPNKA, a Soviet Union journal. She won awards at numerous State Fairs, Santa Fe Indian Market, and other exhibitions.

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This child-size water jar was most certainly made for local use at the pueblo.  It dates to the late 1800s and, at that time, very little pottery of this style was being made for sale.  Mr. Seligman, at the Santo Domingo Trading Post at that time, purchased pottery to sell to travelers on the AT&SF train which made a daily stop in front of his trading post.  He was very particular of the quality of pottery he purchased and this one would have been too crudely painted for his tastes.

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The Arapaho are a tribe of Native Americans historically living on the plains of Colorado and Wyoming. They were close allies of the Cheyenne tribe and loosely aligned with the Lakota and Dakota. The Arapaho language, Heenetiit, is an Algonquian language.

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In the early 20^th century, many artists moved to Santa Fe for health reason, mostly tuberculosis, and the New Mexico air was a curative and many survived to paint for many decades.  Others were not so lucky.  In 1938, Alfred Morang came to Santa Fe for a cure for his tuberculosis.  He was already a well-trained artist at that time, having painted in Maine and Massachusetts.  It was not his health that took his life but a fire in his studio while he was asleep.

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In 1918, Leon Gaspard and his wife settled in Taos, New Mexico. A late comer to the art scene in Taos, he was received coolly at first until "Buck" Dunton made him his friend. Painting and traveling, Gaspard was able to establish himself as an important painter of the West.

Gaspard had been born in Russia and was a respected European painter long before he came to America. His first one-man show while still a student in Paris resulted in the purchase of 35 Paris sketches by a New York collector.

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