Eagle Dancers and Drummer and Singer [SOLD]

Tonita Vigil Peña (1893-1949) Quah Ah moved from San Ildefonso Pueblo to Cochiti Pueblo when her mother passed away.  She was only 12 years old at the time and she then lived with her aunt and uncle until she married at age 15.  She lived at Cochiti for the remainder of her life and passed away in 1949.

By the time Tonita was 25 years old, she was a successful easel artist, and her work was being shown in museum exhibitions and in commercial art galleries in Santa Fe and Albuquerque. She painted what she knew best — scenes of life at the pueblo — mostly ceremonial dances and everyday events. She is still considered one of the best female Indian artists of all time.

Tonita apparently painted several Eagle Dance ceremonies, if one is to judge by the fact that there are three currently on display at the gallery.  There is, however, a wide range in dates when these three were painted.  This one was painted in 1922-23 at the time that she was married to Epitacio Arquero.  It was the only period when she signed with her married name.

Tonita gained her reputation and fame for the care she took in presenting accurate details of dancers’ costuming.  Her paintings serve as an excellent historical record of the period.

This painting of Eagle Dancers and Drummer and Singer was executed in opaque watercolor on paper. It is signed Quah Ah and Tonita P. Arquero in lower right.

Condition: appears to be in good condition with slight discoloration of the cream-color paper.

Provenance: from the estate of a former client from New York

Recommended Reading:  Tonita Peña by Samuel Lewis Gray

Tonita Peña – Image Source:  from the book Tonita Peña by Samuel L. Gray.  Photo by T. Harmon Parkhurst.  Museum of New Mexico Fine Arts Collection, negative #46988.