Santa Clara Pueblo Polished Black Jar

TINA GARCIA

Publication: Tina Garcia, 1987, Santa Clara Pueblo

This Polished Black Jar is in original condition. The medium for this jar is clay and it is 5 3/8" height x 6 3/8" diameter. It was made at Santa Clara Pueblo, New Mexico in 1987 by Tina Garcia (1957-2005). Each of the northern Rio Grande Tewa pueblos historically produced some sort of black pottery. Originally used for utilitarian purposes, these vessels were simple, elegant, and beautiful. Many modern day potters have tried and failed to achieve the elegance and classic beauty of historic-era Tewa pottery. Tina Garcia was successful in creating modern vessels that honor her ancestor's traditional methods. Tina Garcia was the granddaughter of Severa Tafoya. Her mother was from Santa Clara Pueblo and her father from Ohkay Owingeh. She learned pottery making from her grandmother and her aunt, Angela Baca. She was producing blackware herself by the time she was eleven. When she decided to become a career potter, she spent time in museums studying the art form. After spending time with the collections at the School of American Research in Santa Fe, she came to the decision to only create pieces that reflected the classic Tewa shapes and forms. She made pots that honored the traditional forms with a beautifully polished modern finish. This finely polished jar by Tina Garcia is a tribute to her ancestors. A perfectly shaped body meets the shoulder where an elegantly shaped neck rises to meet a slightly flared rim. The jar was stone polished and left without any form of decoration. The vessel shape itself is the art form. It is the same vessel shape seen in works by Sara Fina Taofya in the late 1800s. Tina's work is highly collectible and desirable, as it is at once modern and traditional. This is an excellent piece from a very special potter.

Inventory Number: 45632