Maria Martinez

2 Pages 436 Words

Maria Martinez is a Pueblo Indian part of the San Ildefondo tribe. One of the amazing factors involving Maria Martinez’s work has been the incredible length of time that she has spent in producing her pottery. Her life has been spent learning, perfecting, teaching and expanding her art. Maria was born in the 1880’s and had been an active potter for over 70 years. As a young woman, Maria was known as the most skilled potter of her pueblo tribe. For this reason, an archaeologist asked her to recreate the original shapes of ancient black pots that he had excavated. As with many other art forms, the original format is often considered less effective because it produces fewer actual pieces or the intended art. In reality, the tenacious effort applied in careful traditional processes allows the soul of the artist to infuse the artwork with the true intended meaning. It has been termed, “Black on Black” work. (Peterson 23) “Black on Black” sounds as though it may be an unimaginative concept, however, on the contrary it is truly subtle work, as a matte finish black surface is balanced and blended with a shiner, polychrome black. It is almost as though a soft black is shadowed next to a bright one and the combination of both, create a piece visually greater that is the two finishes were to stand alone on two separate pieces. Therefore, what Maria has created in what at first seems to be a simple piece of ceramics, is actually a representation of her own views on spirituality and beauty (Peterson 37). Maria’s acclaim in the art world brought back a certain pride to the Pueblo people. Alfreda Ward Maloof writes in Recollections From My Time in the Indian Service, of meeting Maria Martinez and of being impressed by her abundant skills and vibrant enthusiasm. She even developed a primer that she planed to use instructing students in reading entitled, “Maria Martinez Makes Pottery.” It may have been one of the first Bureau of India...