Catalog of an exhibition curated by the Pueblo Pottery Collective and held at the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture/Laboratory of Anthropology, Santa Fe, July 30, 2022-May 29, 2023, the Vilcek Foundation and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, July 13, 2023-June 2, 2024, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, October 27, 2024-January 19, 2025, and at the Saint Louis Art Museum, March 9-June 1, 2025. Published in association with the Vilcek Foundation and the School for Advanced Research, Santa Fe. Includes bibliographical references and index.
Contents:
Preface / Elysia Poon -- Asserting Indigenous intellect into the collection / Joseph Aguilar -- Clay stories / Nora Naranjo Morse -- Map : contemporary Pueblo communities of the Southwest -- Catalogue -- Afterword : amplifying Native voices / Rick Kinsel.
Summary:
No art form is more associated with the Native Americans of the Southwest than pottery. For centuries, Pueblo people have made beautiful pottery, often painted with intricate designs, for everyday activities such as cooking, food storage and gathering water, and for ceremonial use. Vessels of these types have been found at ancient sites including Chaco Canyon and Mesa Verde. The tradition of pottery-making continues to thrive among Pueblo communities in the Southwest, and while pottery is still made for practical purposes, it is also commonly produced for the art market. Since the time of the Ancestral Puebloans, pottery has been made predominantly by women. The pots are created from natural clay using a coil method; they are hand-painted and then fired outdoors. Designs vary from one Pueblo to another, but many symbols and motifs are shared by the Pueblos. An impressive survey of more than 100 pieces of historic Pueblo pottery, Grounded in Clay is remarkable for the fact that its content has been selected by Pueblo community members. Rather than relying on Anglo-American art historical interpretations, this book foregrounds Native American voices and perspectives. More than 60 participants from 21 Pueblo communities in the Southwest - among them potters and other artists, as well as writers, curators and community leaders - chose one or two pieces from the collections of the Indian Arts Research Center at the School of Advanced Research in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and the Vilcek Collection in New York. They were then given the freedom to express their thoughts in whichever written form they wished, prose or poem. Exhibition: Museum of Indian Arts & Culture, Santa Fe, USA (31.07.2022 - 28.05.2023) / Vilcek Foundation & Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, USA (13.07.2023 - 04.06.2024) / Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, USA (2024) / Saint Louis Art Museum, USA (2025).
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.