San Ildefonso Red Carved Sgraffito Design Jar signed DA [SOLD]

Tony Da started his art career as a painter at a very young age and continued painting throughout high school and afterwards.  It was not until he lived with his Grandmother, Maria Martinez, that he became a potter.  He moved in with Maria in 1966 and began the process of making pottery under her tutelage.  His timing was perfect, as the 1960s was a period of great interest in pueblo pottery.

Tony mastered the techniques of pottery making very fast and in a short time was making very thin-walled pottery, thinner than those of Maria.  Clara, Maria's sister, polished most of Tony's pottery as she did those of Maria.  She did this throughout his career until she retired in the late 1970s from polishing pottery of family members.  His dad, Popovi Da, set the standards of quality for Tony and never let up on doing so.  In two short years, Tony had mastered the techniques and was producing pottery of the highest quality and beauty.

In 1967, Tony entered competition at the Gallup Inter-tribal Indian Ceremonials with eight pieces for which he won seven first place awards and one second place.

This small jar is typical of works by Tony Da in the late 1960s.  It is signed with his traditional DA signature.  This was a time before he started adding turquoise and hieshe to his works.  This is more typical of traditional Tewa pottery with the exception that the design was carved rather than painted.  Tony pecked away at the polished red clay surrounding the Avanyu to get back down to the natural tan clay body.  His carving was impeccable.

Tony's career ended abruptly in 1982, at the age of about 40 years, as the result of an off-road motorcycle accident that precluded his return to pottery making. He had a short career of about 12 years of making pottery, but in that time he completely transformed pottery from the simple black-on-black to a magnificent jewel of art.  After his accident, he never returned to making pottery.  He passed away peacefully on the 12th of February, 2008 at 67 years of age.

Condition: the jar is in original condition.  There is a very small section of one of the lower red fins of the Avanyu just to the right of the head that appears to have popped out during firing.  It is very minor and not truly noticeable except with magnification.

Provenance: from the collection of a family from Pennsylvania

Reference and Recommended Reading:  The Life and Art of Tony Da by Charles King and Richard Spivey