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San Ildefonso Pueblo Blackware byDesideria Sanchez 11.5” Black on Black Bowl Pottery
Condition: The bowl shows many scratches on the inside and outside, and there are a few surface chips. Clear, detailed photos and a video have been included in the listing for the buyer to inspect condition before purchasing.
The bowl is clearly signed in the clay on the bottom “Desideria.” The technique is to polish the entire jar with a shiny finish and then to paint in the negative grey to create the design.
Diameter: 11.5”
Height: 2.5"
History: Desideria Montoya Sanchez was a sister of noted potter Maria Martinez. She often worked with her husband Donicio, who painted some of her pottery. Three of her five children, including Juanita Roybal, Pilar Aguilar, and Santiago Sanchez, did not continue in the pottery-making tradition. However, Santiago’s wife, Angelita Sanchez is a well-known potter. She also created elegant black-on-black pottery, but her forms and painted designs are distinctly different from those of Maria & Julian.
She and her sisters, Maximiliana, Juanita, and Clara, all created their own distinguished artworks, but unfortunately are best remembered only for their assistance to their famous sister, Maria Martinez. Desideria’s own skill and vision, however, were fully developed as evident in this outstanding vessel.
Desideria demonstrated pottery making at the Museum of New Mexico as early as 1909 with her sisters Maria and Anna, Tonita Roybal, and Ramona Gonzales, acknowledging her acceptance as a major and outstanding potter. She was featured in the exhibit “Seven Families in Pueblo Pottery” at the Maxwell Museum of Anthropology of the University of New Mexico in 1974. She has been featured in a number of books and articles—too many to list here.
