Santa Clara Pueblo Highly Polished Black Pottery Melon Jar by Helen Shupla

Helen Shupla: Master of the Melon Jar

The black melon jar, a testament to the artistic prowess of Santa Clara artisan Helen Shupla, is characterized by its high polish and impeccable shape. Helen's innovative creativity and exceptional skill earned her numerous accolades for her uniquely shaped and polished bowls and jars.

Crafting a melon jar is a meticulous task, requiring the artist to know exactly how much outward pressure to apply to form the undulating ribs. Excessive pressure can lead to cracks, ruining the piece. Helen, however, had mastered the delicate balance of shaping and polishing these jars to perfection.

Born at Santa Clara Pueblo in 1928, Helen Baca Shupla married Kenneth Shupla, a Hopi katsina doll carver. The couple resided at Santa Clara Pueblo. Helen was proficient in firing redware and blackware, and she was renowned for her ability to create pots with a flawless polish. Her works are so esteemed that they grace the cover of Stephen Trimble's book on pueblo pottery, "Talking with the Clay: The Art of Pueblo Pottery."

Helen Shupla's legacy continues through her Hopi son-in-law, Alton Komalestewa, whom she taught pottery while he lived at Santa Clara. Komalestewa, the great-grandson of Hopi potter Nampeyo of Hano, carries on the tradition of crafting the melon jar design that he learned from his mother-in-law.

Condition: very good condition

Provenance: this Santa Clara Pueblo Highly Polished Black Pottery Melon Jar by Helen Shupla is from the collection of a family from Albuquerque

Reference: Talking with the Clay: The Art of Pueblo Pottery by Stephen Trimble

TAGS: Southwest Indian Pottery, Santa Clara Pueblo, Tohono O'odham (Papago), Alton Komalestewa, Hopi Pueblo, Helen Shupla, Nampeyo of Hano