San Ildefonso Large Polychrome Jar by Blue Corn

A Return to Tradition at San Ildefonso Pueblo

This jar, with its shape reminiscent of Blue Corn's favored style, stands out due to its unusually large size. The design features a traditional feather pattern, with each feather vertically positioned and highlighted with a dark green block near the tip.

The upper neck of the jar is adorned with a checkerboard pattern, alternating between a dark yellow pigment and the jar's base slip. This pattern is mirrored in a pair of bands located below the jar's widest area, repeating the yellow and green colors. The cream slip, a unique stone-polished concoction devised by Blue Corn and her husband, Sandy, adds a distinctive finish to the jar.

In the 1960s, Blue Corn and Sandy spent two years experimenting with slips to revive the 19th-century Polychrome wares of San Ildefonso. This experiment resulted in them developing a slip like that used at the pueblo in the 19th century.  This "stone polished" slip revival allowed Blue Corn and others to eventually replace the base slip imported from Cochiti in 1900, which required only rag polishing, and return to traditional San Ildefonso Polychrome of the 19th century. This technique resulted in the highly-burnished finish seen today in Blue Corn's pottery. 

Crucita Gonzales Calabaza (1921-1999) Blue Corn was born at San Ildefonso Pueblo. She was encouraged by her grandmother, at an early age, to "forget school and become a potter." She went on to become one of the greatest San Ildefonso Pueblo ceramicists. She made pottery for over 60 years, working in black, red, and polychrome, using a variety of forms. During World War II, she worked as a housekeeper for J. Robert Oppenheimer in Los Alamos. Blue Corn's house was located across the plaza from that of Maria Martinez, but there was no competition between the two artisans. Blue Corn was one of the most honored of twentieth century potters. She received the 1981 New Mexico Governor's Award—New Mexico's highest artistic award—and she was acclaimed for her artistic accomplishments in the Wall Street Journal and AMEPNKA, a Soviet Union journal. She won awards at State Fairs, Santa Fe Indian Market, and many other notable exhibitions.

Blue Corn and her husband Sandy are to be credited for their vision and dedication to return San Ildefonso Pueblo pottery to its 19th Century roots. Without their deduction the stone-polished cream slip of prior days probably would not be in use today.

The jar is signed with the artist's name, Blue Corn, and San Ildefonso Pueblo.

Condition: this San Ildefonso Large Polychrome Jar by Blue Corn is in excellent condition

Provenance: from an exhibit by Eagle Dancer Gallery of Denver that toured several cities in China in 1981, during which the gallery was forbidden to sell items displayed. Purchased in 1985 by the current owners after the exhibit returned to Denver.

Recommended Reading: Pottery by American Indian Women: The Legacy of Generations by Susan Peterson

TAGS: Maria and Julian, San Ildefonso, Kewa Pueblo - Santo Domingo, Southwest Indian Pottery, Crucita Gonzales Calabaza (1921-1999) Blue Corn