San Ildefonso Pueblo pottery is most commonly characterized by the iconic black-on-black pottery style pioneered in the 1920s by potter Maria Martinez (1887-1980) and her husband, Julian Martinez (1879-1943). This highly-polished blackware pottery aesthetic has influenced generations of San Ildefonso potters, who continue innovating Pueblo pottery in this style today. But prior to Maria & Julian’s innovations, San Ildefonso had a long pottery tradition, notable for cream-colored jars and vessels painted with polychrome (i.e., multicolored) geometric and floral designs. These older San Ildefonso Pueblo examples are often marked by their excellent craftsmanship in shape with thin walls, elegant sharp shoulders (in jars), and fluted or carved openings.
Indian Pottery how to Identify Antique San Ildefonso Polychrome Pottery
Master San Ildefonso Pueblo Potter Tony Da
The Lost Tiles of Awa Tsireh and Paul St. Gaudens | with Host Dr. Mark Sublette
How to identify Tony Da Pottery with host Dr. Mark Sublette
Had a wonderful discussion with the contemporary pueblo potter Russell Sanchez of San Ildefonso pueblo. I've known Russell Sanchez for at least 30 years and we had a nice talk about what it means to be a potter and how pottery became his chosen field, including his tutelage from the famed pueblo potters Rose Gonzales and Tony and Anita Da who influenced him.