Hopi Lidded Jar with Bird Designs by Sadie Adams [SOLD]

Hopi-Tewa artist Sadie Adams created this unique lidded pottery jar. The vessel feels substantial, with walls that are just a bit thicker than the typical piece adding weight. A lid with a raised handle sits comfortably atop the jar, with a circular form hanging down to hold it in place. Adams was known for her ability to create inventive, appealing forms, and this piece is a particularly strong one.

Adams used black pigments over a white slip for this jar. Traditional Hopi designs and geometric shapes are arranged to form a large bird design, which appears twice on the jar's exterior. Slimmer vertical elements appear in the spaces between the birds, dividing the jar into two identical halves. The crisp white slip has mellowed and darkened a bit over the years into an earthy gray; the circular area beneath the lid reveals the jar's original color.

The bottom of the jar is marked with Adams' flower hallmark.

Sadie Adams (1905-1995) was a Hopi-Tewa artist of the Kachina and Parrot Clans. Adams lived in the Tewa village at First Mesa on the Hopi Pueblo reservation. Her Hopi name is Flower Girl (or Flower Woman) and she signed her pottery with a few variations of a flower design. Adams was very versatile in the pottery she made—jars, bowls, lamps, tiles, cookie jars, plates, cups, and saucers—so it is no wonder that so many collectors appreciate her work. She had a long, successful career making and selling pottery on the reservation and supported her family in this manner following the death of her husband. She supported her family solely from sales of her pottery, even sending her daughter to nursing school. Adams passed away in 1995.

Condition: good condition with a few light abrasions

Provenance: this Hopi Lidded Jar with Bird Designs by Sadie Adams is from a private collection

Recommended Reading: HOPI AND HOPI-TEWA POTTERY - Published in Plateau, volume 49.

TAGS: Hopi Pueblo, Southwest Indian Pottery, Sadie Adams