San Ildefonso Pueblo Very Large Black-on-black Pottery Jar by Carmelita Dunlap [SOLD]

This is the largest and finest Southwest Indian Pottery Jar by Carmelita Dunlap that we recall ever seeing at Adobe Gallery.  It is massive in size and beautifully made and designed.  The design is confined to the mid-body and consists of rectangular panels, each of which contains a unique design.  The jar is beautifully thin-walled.

Carmelita Dunlap was the daughter of Juanita and Romando Vigil of San Ildefonso Pueblo.  Her mother passed away when Carmelita was very young and her mother’s two sisters, Maria Martinez and Desideria Montoya, raised her.  She took turns staying with Maria for a few months and then with Desideria for a few months.  She learned to make pottery by watching Maria and Desideria at work.

Carmelita Dunlap lived in California in the early 1950s while her dad worked for Walt Disney Studios.  In 1955, she moved back to San Ildefonso and began seriously focusing on pottery.  In 1974, she was one of the pueblo potters invited by former United States President and Mrs. Nixon to visit the White House and one of her large pots was displayed at that time at the Smithsonian Institution.

Carmelita was one of the few potters at San Ildefonso making Polychrome pottery wares but she also made Black-on-black pottery wares as well.  This has to be one of the most spectacular Black-on-black jars she ever made.  It is thin-walled, sits straight and designed beautifully.  It is signed on the underside.

Condition: this San Ildefonso Pueblo Very Large Black-on-black Pottery Jar by Carmelita Dunlap is in very good condition with some areas of abrasion at the widest part of the jar

Recommended Reading: Pueblo Indian Pottery: 750 Artist Biographies by Gregory and Angie Schaaf

Relative Links: Southwest Indian Pottery, Carmelita Dunlap, Romando Vigil, San Ildefonso Pueblo, Desideria Montoya, Maria Martinez