Pueblo pottery from the American Southwest, hand-coiled and fired without a wheel, using locally sourced clay and natural pigments. The coiling technique used across Pueblo pottery traces back over two thousand years, with potters building vessels from long rolls of clay layered and shaped by hand, then scraped, slipped with a fine clay mixture and fired in open pits using wood fuel. Navajo pottery is distinguished by a coating of pinon pitch applied while still hot from the kiln, giving the surface a dark, burnished finish. Hopi pottery uses a yellowware clay that turns buff to gold when fired, painted with yucca leaf brushes in red and black designs. Zuni pottery is known for its intricate painted geometric patterns. The pieces in this collection are original works sourced on buying trips to the pueblos and reservations of New Mexico and Arizona.
