Tesuque Rain God figurines have enchanted collectors for over a hundred years now. Museum curators despised them in the 1880s and 1890s as abominations and a disgrace to the pueblo potters who were reduced to making such. Collectors, however, loved them apparently. Sales of them were a bonanza to Santa Fe merchants, such as Gold and Candelario. In the late-1890s, Jake Gold partnered with J. S. Candelario to open a curio shop on East San Francisco Street in Santa Fe.

Jonathan Batkin, in The Native American Curio Trade in New Mexico stated that the only way for Gold to have sufficient merchandise for his new curio store was for him to develop some type of artifact and have the Pueblo Indians provide it in quantity. The most famous item of this category that Gold had a hand in was the development of the Tesuque rain god figurine, an item for which he was paying 5 cents each.

Gold both wholesaled and retailed rain god figurines. On a typical year, he retailed over 100 of them from the store and shipped those 100 to a barrel for wholesale customers for $6.50 per barrel. By 1907, he was shipping over 1000 rain gods annually. The sales continued for years, although at a lesser quantity during the depression years. Records indicate that Candelario shipped barrels of them to merchants in Colorado and New Mexico.

Thousands must have been made over the years by Tesuque potters, but only hundreds have survived. Curio items of any sort eventually get broken or thrown away but fortunately some collectors treasure them enough to keep them safe.

This figurine is typical of the style made between 1900 and 1925. The figurine was covered in cream slip over which the elaborate design was painted in black and red vegetal and mineral paints. The figurine has sculpted hair painted black and holds a decorated jar on his lap. The painted designs on the cheeks and painted eyebrows and eyes are typical of the early 1900s figurines. This is one of the more elaborately painted rain gods which makes one suspect it is one of the earlier ones before demand increased so significantly that potters began producing faster and decorating less.

Condition: The toes on the right foot are broken off; otherwise it is in original condition.
Provenance: from a gentleman in Taos, NM whose grandfather owned a curio store near the plaza.
Reference and Recommended Reading: The Native American Curio Trade in New Mexico by Jonathan Batkin

Subject: Tesuque Pueblo Polychrome Rain God Figurine
Potter Unknown
Category: Figurines
Origin: Tesuque Pueblo
Medium: clay, paint
Size: 7" tall
Item # 25621

The origin of Tesuque Rain Gods is still somewhat in question. They may be an indigenous development out of a more general Tewa tradition. Before the emergence of the figurine as we know it today, there existed figurines closely related to Kokopelli, the humpbacked, phallic flute player. These early figurines displayed sexual characteristics of male and female genders. A strong similarity exists between these ancestral Rain God figurines and the late 19th century ones. The sexual characteristics disappeared rapidly once the figurines became commercial products.

Their entry into the commercial realm was due to a Santa Fe merchant named Jake Gold who offered Tesuque potters ten cents for each figurine. The potters removed the sexual characteristics from the dolls (probably at the request of Gold) and placed a pot in the lap or on the head. Thus we have the Rain God, as we know it today.

This fine example of a Tesuque Rain God, which probably dates to circa 1890s, originally had paint on his cheeks but most of that is worn away. It appears that the figurine might have had a short beard on his chin but it is not clearly evident that this is so.

Condition: the right foot is partially broken off but not very evident because it is under the jar.
Provenance: from a young man in Albuquerque who inherited it from his grandfather who grew up on Tesuque Pueblo.
Recommended Reading: The Native American Curio Trade in New Mexico by Jonathan Batkin

Subject: Nineteenth Century Tesuque Rain God
Potter Unknown
Category: Figurines
Origin: Tesuque Pueblo
Medium: clay, paint
Size: 5-1/2" tall
Item # C3387

This Acoma olla dates to circa 1940s, and is a superb example of a potter's art. As all traditional pottery of that time period, this olla was formed of native clay with ground pottery shard temper, rag-wiped white slip, red neck interior, and red-slipped underbody with concave base, typical of Acoma pottery.

The high point of maximum diameter, design elements, execution and a shorter neck are indicative of vessels of this time period. The artist chose not to divide the design field into distinct areas separated by division lines; rather, she chose to use the full field to express a single artistic concept.

The rim top and dual framing lines are worked in black paint from a mineral source, which is really dark brown, and are without ceremonial breaks. The fine line and geometric/curvilinear elements are mineral black on rag-wiped white slip, with additional embellishments in typical orange.

There are two main elements of design incorporating the full extent of the jar. One element, on opposing sides of the jar, is a large diamond from rim to lower framing line and from mid-body extending to the adjacent design elements, which, also on opposing sides, are comprised of absolutely exquisite all-black triangles, fine lines, and curvilinear elements. The diamond elements are split down their centers with a band of fine-line triangles alternating left and right. Within the triangles to the left and right of this split are strong black elements and orange triangles.

The all black-on-white sections of the design are graceful in their emphasis on the four long curving lines of solid black with appended black triangles and fine line cloud-like elements. Overall, the jar is beautifully decorated in any position it is viewed. The painting is evidence of an outstanding potter.

Condition: The integrity of the vessel is excellent. There is a slope to the upper rim of the jar but that is the manner in which the potter constructed the vessel.
Provenance: from the estate of Reggie Sawyer, the Hanging Tree Gallery, Albuquerque
Recommended Reading: The Pottery of Acoma Pueblo by Lanmon and Harlow

Subject: Historic Acoma Pueblo Polychrome Olla, circa 1940s
Category: Historic
Origin: Acoma Pueblo
Medium: clay, pigment
Size: 9-3/4" tall x 11" diameter
Item # C3385B

Many of the Hopi dances hold social as well as symbolic purposes and act to unite the men and women of the tribe. In the "White Buffalo" dance, a man dresses as and acts the part of the animal; head tucked downward, he paws the earth with his feet and creates movements that recall the animal vividly. The man's partner will be dressed in a very feminine outfit somewhat representing the Palhikmana or Butterfly Maiden Katsina. Danced as a prayer for the increase of buffalo, and is borrowed from another tribe's heritage, this ceremony is a prayer for health and prosperity also.

Elements of ceremonial dress include a kilt, from the back of which emerges a sash that represents the buffalo's tail. The dancer's head covering incorporates horns and frames his face.

Lowell Talashoma, Sr., was a Hopi artist whose bronzes were cast from carvings done by him in cottonwood root. His images were inspired by Hopi belief and "liberated" from the raw material through the artist's vision of what was within. Although he could work faster in preparation for bronzing by using wax or clay, Lowell preferred to interact with the wood, a material he respected for its inherent life and character. The castings made from his carvings via the lost wax method retain that spirit. Even the grain of the original wood can be discerned in the bronze.

This bronze casting of the White Buffalo was issued in an edition of 35 in 1983. This is number 1 of the edition.

Condition: bronze is in original condition.
Provenance: from the estate of a California family
Recommended Reading: Kachinas: a Hopi Artist's Documentary by Barton Wright

Subject: Bronze Sculpture of Kocha Mosair - White Buffalo
Artist / Carver: Lowell Talashoma, Sr. (1950-2003)
Category: Bronze
Origin: Hopi Pueblo
Medium: bronze casting, wood pedestal
Size: 10-3/4" tall including pedestal
Item # C3365E

The Koyemsi are best known as Mudheads because of the color of their head coverings. The Koyemsi were imported from Zuni Pueblo in the late 1800s by the Hopi to replace their equivalent one called Tachuki, which no longer exists at Hopi. Only the Zuni-style Koyemsi exists at Hopi now. The name Mudhead is an English name given by traders and others.

Legend has it that Koyemsi were born of an incestuous union between brother and sister and the knots on their head are deformity as a result of the relationship.

According to Barton Wright "The Koyemsi are not considered to be Kachinas and they live in a separate location...near the kachinas home...but are not a part of them."

The Koyemsi are not clowns in the manner of the Koshari. When the Koyemsi "clown around" it is in the guise of playing games with children or even adults, not being buffoons.

In this presentation of a Katsina doll, Ronald Honyouti has correctly dressed the Mudhead in the black woman's manta, a fragment of which is worn as a kilt. The Mudhead is painting a flat katsina doll (tihu) of Hahai-i-Wuhti, which will be a present to a Hopi child during the Powamu Ceremony in February. Hahai-i-Wuhti is the first Katsina doll presented to a newborn.

Amazingly, the entire doll appears to have been carved from a single cottonwood root. The paint brush is the only added feature. When one attempts a carving as complicated as this, there is no room for a mistake. It must be planned carefully and accurately, which is what Honyouti certainly did. Ronald Honyouti and his brothers, Loren and Brian, are considered among the finest katsina doll carvers on the reservation and one can certainly see the reason when viewing this magnificent carving.

Condition: original condition
Provenance: from the estate of a family from Kentucky
Recommended Reading: Clowns of the Hopi: Tradition Keepers and Delight Makers by Barton Wright

Subject: Hopi Seated Mudhead Painting a Tihu
Artist / Carver: Ronald Honyouti (b.1955)
Category: Traditional
Origin: Hopi Pueblo
Medium: cottonwood root, stain, paint
Size: 9" tall; 6-3/8" x 5-3/8" pedestal
Item # C3379A

Unquestionably the outstanding Tesuque Pueblo painter and one of the most outstanding of all the pueblo artists was Patrick Swazo Hinds. Adopted at the age of 9 by a California family, Swazo grew up off the reservation but returned every summer to Tesuque. It is this exposure to a different way of life that is probably responsible for his style of art and that, in turn, is responsible for his wide appeal and his great success as an artist.

Swazo exhibited widely in the West, with many general or one-man shows in Berkeley and San Francisco, and in Arizona, New Mexico and Oklahoma. Some of his one-man shows were at the Heard Museum, Phoenix, Pacific School of Religion, Berkeley, and the Beaux Arts Gallery, Oakland-all in the 1960s-and another show, a very superior one, at the Heard in 1970. His awards at these and other shows are much too many to mention. He frequently won First and Purchase awards.

Swazo easily combined a Native American inheritance by birth with an Anglo education to produce a painting style he described as "Indian theme to nonobjective abstract." He is still recognized as a major artist of the 20th century.

In this painting-believed to be oil on paper-Swazo illustrates three pueblo men chanting, most likely during a pueblo plaza dance. The men are illustrated completely in brown color, with only one man wearing a solid red bandana around his head. One can almost visualize Swazo with a brush loosely and casually applying strokes to the paper. It is this loose style, with no fine detail, that makes his art so appealing.

The painting is signed Swazo in lower left in very broad strokes. It has recently been examined out of the frame and put back in using spacers between paper and glass and using acid-free materials for backing the painting. UV filtering Conservation Glass replaced the original glass. The red wood liner and the dark brown wood frame perfectly compliment the painting.

Condition: original condition
Provenance: from the personal collection of Margaret Gutierrez, potter of Santa Clara Pueblo
Recommended Reading: Southwest Indian Painting: a changing art by Clara Lee Tanner

Subject: Original Painting of Pueblo Male Chanters
Artist: Patrick Swazo Hinds 1929-1974
Category: Paintings
Origin: Tesuque Pueblo
Medium: oil on paper
Size: 17-1/4" x 14-1/4" image; 20" x 17" framed
Item # C3372D

Gilbert Atencio's family included four siblings, one of whom was Helen Gutierrez, a well-known potter from Santa Clara Pueblo. His parents were Isabel Montoya (1899-1996) and Benjamin Atencio (? -1963). His grandmother and Maria Martinez's mother were sisters. His niece is Geraldine Gutierrez who is a painter and potter living at Santa Clara Pueblo.

Atencio attended the Santa Fe Indian School. By the time he was twenty, he had exhibited at the Santa Fe Museum, the Gallup Inter-tribal Indian Ceremonial, at Albuquerque venues, and at the Philbrook Art Center in Oklahoma. He had been awarded six first prizes, six second prizes and five third prizes by the age of 19.

He will certainly be recognized as one of the finest pueblo painters of the second half of the 20th century, not only from San Ildefonso Pueblo, but among all pueblo painters. His attention to detail was unequalled. As a professional medical illustrator at Los Alamos National Labs (LANL), Atencio carried forward his precise drawing and painting skills over to his fine art paintings. I have been told that he practiced the same diligence relating to ceremonial functions at the pueblo. He did not tolerate less than perfection.

"Atencio's strong sense of family and tribal responsibility has resulted in his seldom venturing from his native pueblo. He experimented with adaptations of his flat style paintings. The artist believes in the traditional Indian ways and his favorite subjects were ceremonies, ceremonial figures, and scenes from Pueblo life. Much of his inspiration came from stories his aunts told him about their lives." Snodgrass, 1968

"San Ildefonso Pueblo's fame as an art center, save for the work of a few men, has diminished in the painting field. One of the main standard bearers is Gilbert Atencio, who has thus far seldom departed from developments of time-honored themes and forms. His crisply drawn and clearly colored renderings of ceremonial and home life have, since around 1947, been favorites in many shows." Dorothy Dunn, 1968

Gilbert Atencio was known for his paintings but little known as a potter. Later in life, he did make pueblo pottery but that was for his own pleasure. Paintings remained his second profession following his retirement from Los Alamos National Labs (LANL). His ability to paint medical illustrations, paint pueblo life scenes, and make pottery illustrates his extraordinary artistic talent.

In this painting, Atencio illustrates four pueblo women in various stages of decorating their pottery. As a potter, Atencio knew that one cannot touch a pot with one's bare hands after construction because hand- and fingerprints will show up on the surface, but only after firing. He illustrated this concept by showing the women holding their pottery with buckskin. It was his knowledge as a potter that led him to do this. I do not recall seeing any other pueblo painter do so. This is typical of his attention to detail. The four women are presented in their finest clothing. His detail in their attire is remarkable as was his treatment of the designs on the pottery.

Condition: original condition
Provenance: from the personal collection of Margaret Gutierrez, potter of Santa Clara Pueblo
Recommended Reading: American Indian Painting of the Southwest and Plains Areas by Dorothy Dunn

Subject: Original Painting "Pueblo Women Decorating Pottery"
Artist: Gilbert Atencio (1930-1995) Wah Peen
Category: Paintings
Origin: San Ildefonso Pueblo
Medium: casein on paper
Size: 16-1/2" x 22" image; 21-3/4" x 27-1/2" framed
Item # C3372B

This necklace was made from several "found materials." The beads were made from bone, the black backing probably from automotive battery casing, the red from toothbrush handles or something similar, and the turquoise is genuine. These necklaces were usually in the squash blossom style, with pendants protruding from the sides and a bird pendant at the bottom, as is this one.

Most necklaces of this style have a pendant bird in the shape of the mythical thunderbird, a squared-off bird facing full forward. This necklace features a more realistic Kewa-style bird as seen on that pueblo's pottery-a much rarer style of pendant.

During the 1930s when the Depression-era was in full swing, New Mexico Pueblo Indians were severely affected. At Santo Domingo Pueblo (now Kewa Pueblo), the Indians became very resourceful and began producing jewelry from whatever materials they could find. One particular folk art creation they produced has become a very collectible item: the Depression-era necklace. Production continued at a lesser rate into the mid-20th century.

Condition: very good condition
Provenance: from the personal collection of Margaret Gutierrez of Santa Clara Pueblo
Recommended Reading (Article): Santo Domingo Pueblo Jewelry by Sally and J. Roderick Moore in The Magazine Antiques, Brant Publications, Inc. July 2009, vol. CLXXVI, no. 1. pp. 56-61

Subject: Kewa (Santo Domingo) Depression-era Necklace
Unknown Maker
Category: Necklaces
Origin: Kewa Pueblo (Santo Domingo)
Medium: found materials, turquoise
Size: 27" long; 2" x 2-1/2" bird
Item # C3371D

Garnet Pavatea was one of the best known of the non-Nampeyo family potters at Hopi First Mesa. She was an extraordinary artisan. Garnet had a long and productive career of pottery making and was a favorite of collectors of Hopi pottery. Her father was a Hopi and her mother a Tewa. She lived at the Tewa Village on First Mesa on the Hopi Reservation. She was an active potter from circa 1940 to circa 1981. She is best known and was fond of making plain red bowls and jars with triangular indentations around the rim as the sole decoration. Often, she made ladles to accompany her bowls. The Museum of Northern Arizona in Flagstaff amassed a major collection of her work.

In checking our history files of pottery, we discovered that we have not had a pottery tile by Garnet in the 10 years that we have maintained computerized files of pottery purchases. I do not know if we ever had one before, so it is exciting to have one now. 

The tile is signed on verso Garnet Pavatea. It is in very good condition. There is some abrasion of the red paint at the edge of the tile, but it is minor.

Subject: Hopi Pueblo Polychrome Pottery Tile by Garnet Pavatea
Aritst: Garnet Pavatea (1915-1981) Flower Girl
Category: Contemporary
Origin: Hopi Pueblo
Medium: Native Clay
Size: 5" x 4"
Item # C3011J

Tony Da, from San ildefonso Pueblo, was destined to become one of the finest artists of the 20th century. His grandparents, Maria and Julian Martinez, and his father, Popovi Da, were skilled artists. Tony was a painter from early in life, and was winning awards for his paintings. A change occurred when he moved in with his grandmother in 1966. She taught him the techniques of pottery making and he learned very well. Within three years, Maria said he had nothing else to learn from her.

Once Tony started making pottery, his creativity took over. He followed all the traditional techniques Maria had taught him, but he blossomed in departing from traditional shapes and designs. He was fond of the Mimbres culture and used their designs on much of his work.

Tony's first pottery pieces were bears. Maria commented that he was very good and she could not do anything to make him better, except that he needed to learn to make ollas, which, of course, he did. In 1982, Tony suffered massive head injuries in a motorcycle accident, which left him unable to continue his pottery career.

From published examples of his bear figurines, it appears that he made them starting in 1966 and continued making them into the late 1970s, perhaps even until his 1982 accident.

The upper body is stone-polished red slip and the underbody is natural unpolished, unslipped tan clay. Into the red slip, Tony carved a heart line from the bear's mouth to his rear. He inserted two pieces of turquoise on the bear's body and two pieces for eyes. He signed his traditional signature DA on one leg. The condition is excellent.
Large bears such as this are extremely rare. I am not aware of another one on the market at this time.

Recommended Reading: The Life and Art of Tony Da by Charles King and Richard Spivey

Subject: Polished Red Incised Bear with Turquoise by Tony Da
Aritst: Tony Da (1940-2008) - Anthony Edward Da
Category: Contemporary
Origin: San Ildefonso Pueblo
Medium: Native Clay and Slip, Turquoise
Size: 6-1/2" long x 4" tall x 3-1/4" wide
Item # C3360F

This late evening winter scene captures the coldness of the air and ground while a pueblo hunter huddles near a small, smoky fire of piñon or cedar, contemplating his strategy-possibly overnight. At the same time the painting reflects the warmth and coziness of being wrapped in a blanket. Even though it's miniature in size, this is a very powerful painting and is one of our favorites from this artist.

Subject: Original Acrylic Painting "Tiwa Deer Hunter"

Artist: Ed Jojola (Shirpoyo) Colors in the Sunrise
Category: Paintings
Origin: Isleta Pueblo
Medium: Acrylic on Board
Size: 2-7/8" x 3-1/4" image; 4-3/8" x 4-3/4" framed
Item # C3127B

Joseph Latoma is a young man who lives at San Felipe Pueblo. His dad is from Zuni Pueblo-thus the reason for his Zuni name-but his mom is Margaret Chavez of San Felipe Pueblo-thus his matriarchal link to San Felipe Pueblo.

Because there is so little documented historic pottery from San Felipe, Latoma has had to create his designs from memories of the older generation of the pueblo. He is very interested in reintroducing traditional San Felipe pottery. The only older potter from there in the last 50 years was Candelaria Montana and she passed away about 20 years ago.

This very large olla was made in the traditional pueblo coil method and slipped with natural regional clay. The designs are a combination of geometric, avian, flora and celestial, all arranged in a most artistic and logical manner. The artist applied the designs in a most precise manner. To protect the design from fire clouds during the firing process, he completely covered the jar with another ceramic jar during the firing. The result is a stunning jar without flaws.

Condition: new condition
Provenance: from the artist

Subject: San Felipe Pueblo Large Polychrome Olla
Artist / Potter: Joseph Latoma
Category: Contemporary
Origin: San Felipe Pueblo
Medium: clay, pigments
Size: 13-3/4" tall x 16" diameter
Item # 25553

This is an extraordinary piece of pottery by Priscilla Nampeyo. It is beautifully formed, using native clay and the coiling technique. A strong decoration consists solely of the traditional Sikyatki-inspired migration pattern starting at the rim and flowing downward to near the base. It has been stated that this pattern reflects the migration of the Hopi through four worlds to this current one.

The jar is signed Priscilla Namingha, a signature, I believe, she used into the 1980s, after which she added Nampeyo to her name. There is a wonderful interview of Priscilla Nampeyo by Greg Schaaf in his book Hopi-Tewa Pottery 500 Artist Biographies.

Condition: The jar is in original excellent condition
Provenance: ex. coll. Frances Sonnenberg, Santa Fe resident

Subject: Hopi Polychrome Jar by Priscilla Nampeyo
Artist / Potter: Priscilla Namingha Nampeyo (1924-2008)
Category: Contemporary
Origin: Hopi Pueblo
Medium: Native materials
Size: 4-3/8" tall x 5-3/4" diameter
Item # C3148A

Designs on pueblo pottery were influenced by many outside sources starting as early at the mid-1800s. Floral elements, birds, deer, and other designs could easily have been influenced by Spanish colcha designs as well as pottery designs from Mexico. It was also evident that potters borrowed designs from pueblos other than their own.

The heartline deer design was first seen at Zuni Pueblo, but later appeared on pottery from Acoma, Laguna and Zia Pueblos. Intermarriage between pueblos also contributed to designs appearing where they never appeared before.

This Acoma jar is completely covered with Zuni design elements. The orange/red fine lines in the A-frame areas are most typically Zuni in origin. The entire layout of the design is typical of Zuni arrangement, yet the pot is from Acoma Pueblo. It is not as thin-walled as Acoma pottery generally is so it is possible that a transplant potter from Zuni or another pueblo moved to Acoma and practiced the art of making Acoma pottery but had not yet achieved the expertise of creating thin walls.

The jar is a beautiful example of a well formed vessel and a beautifully arranged design. It is in excellent condition.

Subject: Acoma Pueblo Polychrome Jar with Zuni Designs
Potter Unknown
Category: Contemporary
Origin: Acoma Pueblo
Medium: Native Materials
Size: 6-3/4" tall x 9" diameter
Item # C3064B

Helen Naha (Feather Woman) and Joy Navasie (Frog Woman) were sisters-in-law. Helen Naha married Joy Navasie's brother, Archie Naha. Helen was known for her stark black-on-white Hopi pottery early in her career and for exquisite polychrome pots in later times. Her hallmark is a feather.

This wonderful wide and low jar is slipped in traditional white slip, over which is painted the decoration in deep dark brown. The design is often referred to as a "bear claw." The round opening at the top of the jar has been outlined in a square orange slip which was then outlined in a pair of black lines. The designs on the four sides of the jar are pendant from the outer black rim line.

Condition: The jar is structurally in excellent condition. There is some slip loss near the feather hallmark on the underside but nothing truly significant.
Provenance: from the collection of an elderly Santa Fean
Recommended Reading: Hopi-Tewa Pottery: 500 Artist Biographies by Gregory and Angie Schaaf

Subject: Hopi Pueblo Flat Top Polychrome Seed Jar by Helen Naha
Artist / Potter: Helen Naha [1922-1993] Feather Woman
Category: Contemporary
Origin: Hopi Pueblo
Medium: clay, pigment
Size: 2-7/8" tall x 5-3/4" diameter
Item # C3391

This is one of the most strikingly beautiful Laguna Pueblo canteens we have acquired in over a decade.  Not only does it have a bulbous front, it has a bulbous back as well.  The vessel sits on its base so that the design is easily visible. 

The canteen was slipped in creamy white clay, polished to a smooth finish and that then became the canvas on which the artist began to execute her design. A circle outlined with a pair of thin black framing lines set the stage for the main body design which was then divided into a pair of semicircles split by a rectangular bar.  The bar was divided by a single black line down its middle from which black triangles are pendant and their directions are alternate.  The triangles were then filled with fine black lines.

The semicircles on the body were each designed with a stepped element inside which is a triangle formed with four black lines intersecting at an apex.  The area between the stepped elements was filled in with red. A wide band encircles the main body design and it contains a chain of triangles, some of which are filled in with red and alternating ones filled in with fine lines.

The back of the canteen is designed with a solid red center bordered by triangles of fine line elements that alternate directions.  The neck repeats such triangles, all of which are pendant from a framing line.  The rim is painted black, the interior of the rim painted red and alternating black and red dots adhere to the handles.  The canteen dates to the first quarter of the 20^th century, probably circa 1920.

Condition: structurally in excellent condition with excellent condition of the painted design.

Provenance: from an elderly lady in Santa Fe

Recommended Reading: Acoma and Laguna Pottery by Rick Dillingham

Subject: Laguna Pueblo Exquisite Pottery Polychrome Canteen
Unknown Maker
Category: Historic
Origin: Laguna Pueblo
Medium: clay, pigment
Size: 6" tall x 6-3/4" wide x 4-1/2" deep
Item # C3389

The prosperity of the 1920s ended with the economic catastrophe known as the Great Depression. By 1933 industrial production had fallen, thousands of banks were closed, and millions of Americans were jobless. President Franklin D. Roosevelt's "New Deal" aimed at promoting economic recovery and putting Americans back to work through Federal jobs programs for the unemployed. Establishing the foundation of the modern welfare state while preserving the capitalist system, the New Deal experimented with unprecedented activism in an attempt to relieve the social and economic dislocation experienced by much of the nation. Federal programs extended not only into American business, agriculture, labor, and the arts, but into people's daily lives. Despite a mixed legacy with respect to recovery and reform, the political response under Roosevelt proved that economic crisis did not require Americans to abandon democracy.

New Mexico was among the poorest states in the Union in the 1920s and it went from bad to worse with the onset of the Depression. The New Deal programs administered throughout the country were especially needed in New Mexico and particularly in rural villages. Perhaps the best known of the back-to-work projects was New Mexico's various arts and crafts projects. The most ambitious of these in New Mexico was the Federal Art Project (FAP) under the direction of Russell Vernon Hunter. Just one year after the start of the program, some 40,000 WPA artists and other cultural workers were employed in projects throughout the United States.

In New Mexico, Hunter supported regional and cultural artistic expression and was lucky to have had both native and established East Coast artists. The various art projects had at their core in New Mexico altruistic efforts to record and preserve traditional native, be it Native American or Hispano, cultural production. Many murals were painted in public buildings in New Mexico and many church altars were copied as a means of preserving them for the future.

This painting of a panel from a New Mexico church altar is typical of some of the activities promoted and was quite likely made by a New Mexican by the name of Jorge Sanchez of Albuquerque who is believed to have worked under the sponsorship of artist Cady Wells. What appears to be damage on the painting is actually the true representation of the damaged altar panel that Sanchez copied. It appears that this is a watercolor, on paper, fixed to artist board. It unfortunately was not signed by the artist.

Condition: appears to be in original condition.
Provenance: from the collection of Katherine H. Rust of Albuquerque
References: The above information on the WPA in New Mexico is based on a published article by the New Mexico Office of the State Historian. The attribution of the work to Jorge Sanchez was from consultation with Santa Fe resident Elizabeth McGorty and gallery owner Nat Owens.

Subject: Original Painting of a Panel from a Church Altar Screen
Artist: Jorge Sanchez - Attribution
Category: Paintings
Origin: European-American Artists
Medium: watercolor on paper
Size: 39-1/2" x 24-1/2" image; 44-1/4" x 29-3/4" framed
Item # C3224AP

Many Native artists contributed to celebrating the 200th anniversary of the United States by producing Navajo blankets, beadwork, basketry and pottery featuring an American flag or a reference to 1776. Santana Melchor (ca.1889-1978) and her granddaughter, Darlene (ca.1950s-), produced this Black-on-red jar featuring an American flag with 76 in the stars and 76 painted on the Liberty Bell. The artists co-signed the underside of the jar.

Santana Melchor was considered one of the finest potters at Santo Domingo in the early- and mid-20th century. She made exceptional large storage jars. Throughout her career, she used traditional designs and is responsible for keeping that tradition alive. She was part of the delegation of pueblo potters who visited the White House in 1974 as a guest of first lady Pat Nixon.

Condition: It is in original condition.
Provenance: from the collection of Katherine H. Rust
Recommended Reading: Southern Pueblo Pottery 2,000 Artist Biographies by Gregory Schaaf

Subject: Kewa Pueblo Black-on-red Jar with an American Flag
Artists / Potters: Santana Melchor (ca.1889-1978) and Darlene Melchor (ca.1950s-)
Category: Contemporary
Origin: Kewa Pueblo (Santo Domingo)
Medium: clay, pigment
Size: 5" tall x 5" diameter
Item # C3227.04

This absolutely wonderful jar by Alvina Garcia features two charming birds among flowers and foliage. The bentonite slip is smooth and creamy and the black designs are strong and bold. She placed the traditional "star" design around the neck of the jar and stone polished the red slip on the interior of the neck.

Condition: The jar is in original excellent condition
Provenance: ex. coll. Frances Sonnenberg, Santa Fe resident.

Subject: Kewa (Santo Domingo) Pueblo Polychrome Jar by Alvina Garcia
Artist / Potter: Alvina Garcia (1943-present)
Category: Contemporary
Origin: Kewa Pueblo (Santo Domingo)
Medium: Native materials
Size: 8-3/4" tall x 8-1/2" diameter
Item # C3148ZF

Cochiti Pueblo has a long history of producing figurative pottery. It reached its prime in the last quarter of the 19th century and the first quarter of the 20th century. There was a strong revival in the early 1970s with the production of storyteller figurines. Some potters at Cochiti expanded beyond the traditional storyteller figurines and made vessels of varying styles, vessels with figurines attached in bas relief, such as this wonderful pottery canteen with a lizard in relief.

A metal stand has been specially fabricated for the canteen so that it sits with the spout turned upward to prevent water from pouring out. The lizard in bas relief is perched on top of the canteen as if heading for the spout to get a drink. The stand provides for a full view of the lizard.

The canteen is not signed by an artist. From the patina, it appears to be at least a half-century old.

Condition: very good condition
Provenance: from the collection of a Santa Fe resident
Recommended Reading: A River Apart: the Pottery of Cochiti and Santo Domingo Pueblos. Edited by Valerie K. Verzuh

Subject: Cochiti Pueblo Pottery Canteen with Lizard Design
Potter Unknown
Category: Contemporary
Origin: Cochiti Pueblo
Medium: clay, pigment, metal stand
Size: 4-1/2" tall x 5-3/8" wide x 4" deep
Item # C3364A