Martha Appleleaf Fender Biography

Martha Appleleaf was born in 1950, the daughter of Carmelita Vigil Dunlap and Nicholas Cata.

Martha remembers that as a child, she watched her aunts, Maria Martinez and Desideria Montoya, making pottery. She has often experimented with different clays and techniques and is known for her green-on-red pots. Her Uncle Tse-Pe made red on cream pottery after her Uncle Albert Vigil's pottery as well as more traditional black-on-black ware. Martha's son Erik Fender is also an accomplished potter.