Original Painting of Two Women With Pottery [R]

Gilbert Atencio, from San Ildefonso Pueblo, believed in the traditional Indian ways and his favorite subjects were ceremonies, ceremonial figures, and scenes from Pueblo life. Here he painted two pueblo women dressed in traditional pueblo clothing and jewelry and working on pottery. Beside and around them are items and symbols familiar to Pueblo Indians— bowls of paint, ceremonial terrace rim bowl, an olla, the Sun, a butterfly, a bird’s head and clouds.

Much of Atencio’s inspiration for paintings came from stories his aunts told him about their lives. His style varied from the traditional flat style done early in his career, to abstract or semi-abstract paintings done later in his career.

Atencio worked at Los Alamos National Laboratories (LANL) most of his adult life as a medical illustrator. It is from this career that he developed his meticulous style and attention to detail. His paintings are flawless. Because of his career, he did not produce a large amount of art until his retirement from LANL.

This painting is signed and dated Gilbert Atencio 1967 in lower right. It is matted and framed with archival materials.