BY M. J. VAN DEVENTER

 Native American pottery is one of the most enduring art forms in the Southwest Indian culture. Visitors to the National Cowboy Museum have an opportunity to view the art from 12 pueblos  through April 8.

“Pueblo to Pueblo: The Legacy of Southwest Indian Pottery” is a reflection of the relationship among 12 pueblos and the artistic influences from outside their own community ~ influences that shaped their culture and their art.

The exhibit pays homage to the extensive collection of Daniel B. Dyer, an Indian agent and his wife, Ida. During their marriage they collected 750 pieces of Southwest Indian pottery. After their second divorce in 1897, a custody battle ensued involving these internationally known curios. The battle raged for 10 years after Daniel’s death. In 1922, two years before Ida’s death, she was awarded custody of these significant artifacts.

These precious pieces of fragile pottery eventually became the property of the Kansas City Museum, an entity that later merged with KC’s Union Station. The exhibition now travels the country, sharing the story of pueblo pottery.

The show mirrors how each pueblo used the materials at hand to create works of art that have endured through time. The colors in the show come from the earth ~ the red, sand, white and gray clays so indigenous to the Southwest. Native potters used these humble materials from the earth to create beautiful pieces that were also functional for their simple lifestyle.

The motifs featured on the pottery reveal the Native Americans’ love for nature ~ the importance of life-giving rain and sun in their culture. The culture’s respect for creatures also play a role in this exhibition. Various pieces show the culture’s fascination with birds, tadpoles, dragonflies and roadrunners, always a symbol of lightening speed in the native American culture.

What is also revealed in the show is the practical use of their pottery. There are those two-sided wedding vessels. One can view these and only imagine an exuberant couple drinking the pueblo wine from both sides of the vessel. The corn meal bowls conjure up images of ladies of the village pounding the corn into meal that will become cornbread ~ a staple of life in this culture.

Touring the exhibit, it is hard to miss the influence of geometric lines in Native American pottery. One significant piece reflects the black and cream geometric checkerboard pattern, now so familiar in the McKenzie-Childs pottery from a contemporary era. Were those current designers influenced by the Native American culture? One can only wonder.

Don’t miss the piece that features a bird’s wing, swept so gracefully in flight or the famed black pottery, created by the late Maria and Juan Martinez, whose work lives on through their collectors.

Frequent visitors to the Cowboy Museum may be slightly startled by this exhibit. Most of us who frequent the Museum are used to walls bulging with art ~ so much to see, so little time. How can we take it all in?

The design of this exhibition, curated by nationally-known museum professional Bill Mercer, is sparse. There are blank walls that seem to beg for paintings or photographic visuals to explain the genesis and value of the exhibition.

Perhaps, there is a silent reason for what seems to be a rather austere approach to this grand subject. Native Americans are, by nature, a quiet, resolute culture. They often work in quiet. The products of their culture ~ pottery, weaving, art ~ are created in the lonesomeness of their existence.

There is a quiet, sacred quality about this exhibition. I would suggest to enter in grace, eager to see the art created by these 12 pueblos. Leave with joy and exuberance, for the beautiful gifts these Native American pueblos have given the world to treasure.

OTHER OPPORTUNITIES DURING THIS EXHIBIT

Feb. 21, 6:30 – 8:30 p.m. “Marketing the Southwest”

A talk by Diana Pardue. Many of the items in the exhibit were originally sold to train travelers who stopped in the Southwest on a quest for Native American souvenirs.

 March 2, 11 to 11:45: (repeated April 6, May 4) : First Friday Gallery Walk/Talk

March 20, 6:30 – 8:30 p.m. “A History of Pueblo Pottery,” a talk by Curator Bill Mercer. Talks are free to Museum members; $5 for non-members.

Among some of the Native cultures represented in this exhibition are Acoma, San Ildefonso, Santa Clara, Cochiti, Tesuque, Hopi, Acoma, Picuris, Zia, San Juan. The show also includes a number of works from Oklahoma City collectors, Arthur and Shifra Silberman, who donated their vast collection to the Museum in the early 1990s.

The exhibition and auxiliary activities are sponsored by Devon and Chesapeake energy companies, Foster and Lynn Friess and the Oklahoma Humanities Council and Smith Kramer Fine Art Services.

WRITER’S BIO: M. J. Van Deventer was the Director of Publications for the National Cowboy Museum from 1990 to 2008. Her book, Native American Style, reflects her interest in the Native American culture.

 

Share this story on Facebook Share this story on Twitter