Kewa Lidded Storage Jar by Robert Tenorio [SOLD]

This polychrome jar was created in 1996 by Santo Domingo Pueblo artist Robert Tenorio.  It’s a large, impressive piece with an atypical shape and an attractive design.  Its lid, which has a rounded handle, elevates the piece to stand just a bit taller than a typical water jar.  At fourteen inches in diameter, it’s quite wide as well, so we’d describe the piece as a storage jar. Its rim turns upward, reaching a vertical position.  On the rim’s interior, Tenorio formed a protruding lip, which allows the lid to sit comfortably within the rim.

Tenorio’s designs are similarly attractive.  A wide primary band features attractive birds and flowers, alternating as they circle the jar’s exterior.  A smaller band up above features a repeating traditional design element which seems to point in the same direction as the birds, reinforcing their motion and adding to their energy.  The lid features smaller variations of the designs that appear on the jar itself.  Robert Tenorio did an excellent job with this large, appealing jar.

The underbody near the base is signed “Robert Tenorio” and marked with his signature star pattern.  “Santo Domingo Pueblo, NM” is inscribed into the bottom.

Robert Tenorio (1950- ) is a Kewa Pueblo artist. Tenorio began his artistic career as a jeweler before moving into pottery making. At first, he created stoneware, and then he transitioned to traditional methods and materials.  Tenorio has evolved into one of the most significant Pueblo potters of today, creating works that have an attractively modern look while being made with ancestral designs and natural materials.  He has exhibited widely and received many notable awards and accolades for his work.

Condition: Excellent condition.  A crack on the bottom of the jar was stabilized and repaired by a professional restoration artist.

Provenance: This Kewa Lidded Storage Jar by Robert Tenorio is from a private New Mexico collection. Originally sold by Tenorio at the 1996 Santa Fe Indian Market.

Recommended Reading: Voices in Clay: Pueblo Pottery from the Edna M. Kelly Collection by Bruce Bernstein, PhD

Relative Links: Southwest Indian Pottery, Kewa - Santo Domingo Pueblo, Contemporary Pottery, Robert Tenorio, Kewa Pueblo Potter