Female Storyteller Figurine with 7 Children by Ada Suina

Cochiti Pueblo artist Ada Suina presents us with a happy female figure expressed clearly in her face. Her mouth gives us a wide smile, her cheeks are full, and her eyes are open and expressive. The seven children are playful and happy as well. Ada dressed her female pottery figurine in a traditional pueblo dress, over one shoulder and under the other. The dress is over a printed blouse with long sleeves. Notice that the dress sways naturally between her legs, a touch not often seen by other potters. Ada also used black, cream, and rust colors. It is these extra details that make Ada's storytellers more natural looking and more collectible.

Ada Suina was born May 20, 1930, at Cochiti Pueblo, the daughter of Berina and Eluterio Cordero, sister to Stephanie C. Rhoades (Snowflake Flower). Her maternal grandmother Estefanita Herrera was instrumental in inspiring Ada to become a potter, and her cousin, Virginia Naranjo, taught her the intricacies of pottery making. Ada still lives at Cochiti Pueblo. She no longer makes pottery, however. She made her first storyteller in 1977. She previously had been busy raising her eleven children. Around her mid-forties, she was encouraged to make pottery and her mother-in-law, Aurelia Suina, taught her how to fire pottery. Ada learned well and her storytellers exhibit her artistic natural talent for presenting the human form in clay.

Condition: very good condition

Provenance: this Female Storyteller Figurine with 7 Children by Ada Suina is from the collection of a client from Florida

Recommended Reading: Clay Mirror - From Monos to Storytellers: Reflections from Cochiti Pueblo. The Tom & Charlotte Mittler Collection