Autumn Borts Medlock, Santa Clara Pueblo Potter

Award winning Santa Clara Pueblo artist Autumn Borts-Medlock is an extraordinary potter with a very creative talent for design and execution. Pottery has always been a part of her life as the family's connection to clay goes back generations.

Autumn Borts-Medlock is the sister of Tammy Garcia, the daughter of Linda Cain, the granddaughter of Mary Cain and great-granddaughter of Christina Naranjo.

She was first introduced to the art form as a child under the guidance of her mother and grandmother, who remain among her strongest influences even today. Working exclusively in the ancient, traditional Pueblo technique of coil-building, they shape bowls, vases, and plates from clay that they gather from the hillsides near their village and process it themselves. Drawing from the spiritual symbolism and nature-oriented design aesthetics of Tewa culture, they carve the shapes of kiva steps, bear paws, feathers, rain clouds, water serpents and lightning bolts into the surface of the vessels and use smooth stones to polish them to a shiny, mirror-like finish.

Autumn Borts Medlock (1967-)  has won numerous awards for her pottery at Santa Fe Indian Market, and her work is in the permanent collections of museums such as the Denver Art Museum and the Heard Museum.

TAGS: Contemporary Pottery, Mary Cain, Linda Cain, Tammy Garcia, Christina Naranjo