Four Piece Isleta Pueblo Holy Family Nacimiento [SOLD]

Stella Teller presents the Holy Family after the birth of Jesús.  Mary is wrapped in a blanket, sitting on a log, and holding the infant, who is happily dressed in warm clothing and wearing a turquoise necklace.  Mary, too, is wearing a turquoise nugget necklace and has her hair tied in a chonga in the back.  She is wearing traditional white moccasins. Joseph is wrapped in a blanket with designs on the front panels.  He has a turquoise necklace and traditional moccasins.

The angel is appropriately dressed in white with her accents featured in grey.  She wears a turquoise necklace and a belt around her waist.  There is a small sheep investigating the scene.

The grey slip and tan slip were left in a matte finish.  The white slip was stone polished.

Stella’s pottery is distinguished from traditional Isleta Polychrome wares by its distinctive colors, which she says are all natural.  The light gray, which has become her trademark, is produced by mixing white clay with manganese.  She was one of the first potters to insert turquoise cabs into the clay

One of Stella's earlier pieces was part of the Smithsonian Institution's traveling exhibit in 1987. She is also represented in museums and galleries in California, Arizona, Texas, Colorado, Wyoming, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Massachusetts, and New Mexico. She is the mother of four daughters (Chris, Mona, Robin and Lynette Teller), all of whom are successful potters.

Stella, at age 88, is still working with the clay.  She just completed this nacimiento in 2017.

Image of Stella J. Teller (1929 – )  at Adobe Gallery - photo credit: Adobe Gallery - do not copy.

Condition: new

Provenance: from the artist

Recommended Reading:  Nacimientos—Nativity Scenes by Southwest Indian Artisans by Guy and Doris Monthan