Laguna Pueblo 16-piece Pottery Nacimiento [R]

When Max Early delivered this nacimiento to us, he explained that he was interested in creating a set that could and would be displayed year round.  To do this, he included figurines from various seasons of the year.  The Saint Nick is appropriate for the Christmas season and then could be put away the remainder of the year.  Saint Patrick, famous for ridding Ireland of snakes, would be appropriate for Saint Patrick's Day, then stored for the remainder of the year. The Grim Reaper, with his pumpkin and black cat, is perfect for Halloween, and then stored away if desired.

The Virgin Mary is presented as the Statue of Liberty, Baby Jesus as the New Year Baby, and Joseph with the display of a heart for Valentine.  There is an Easter Bunny and Easter egg.  The eagle represents the Fourth of July and the turkey for Thanksgiving.  The penguin and Rudolph are thrown in for fun as is the ground hog for Ground Hog Day.

To cap it all off, Max wrote a poem on a white slab of clay that accompanies the nacimiento.  The group is referred to as a nacimiento but really is more representative of all American holidays.  It is a charming set created from a fertile mind.

Max Early was born into the Turkey Clan of his mother and Bear Clan of his father at Laguna Pueblo.  He grew up with his grandparents.  During his early teenage years, he painted some of his grandmother's pottery.  He refined his technique to a personal touch, while maintaining traditional Laguna design symbols and compositions. 

Since 1994, Early has continued to be honored as a top prize-winning artist at Santa Fe Indian Market.  At the same time, he has pursued his higher education degree at the University of New Mexico, leaving little time for making pottery. He hopes to pursue a career as a poet and proudly told us that his first book of poetry will be published in the next few months.

Condition: new

Provenance: from the artist

Recommended Reading: Acoma and Laguna Pottery by Rick Dillingham