Pottery from the Jemez Pueblo usually leaves the terra cotta color of the clay visible over some if not much of the pot. This clay fires to a nice reddish brown and gives the pottery objects a warm feeling. The pot decorator also uses a lighter shade of the terra cotta color, probably combined with a very light clay, to create a pale orange color. With the addition of a black pigment, the Jemez traditional palette is complete. However, in modern times the Jemez have begun to use a white pigment similar to the Acoma pottery, as well as some of the Acoma painting style.
A great deal of the Jemez pottery is decorated in a geometric style. It includes lots of triangular-shaped areas with slightly curved sides to fit the roundness of the pottery piece. Also used in the traditional Jemez decoration is a collar of rounded arches around the neck of the pot, although small round arches in series can also be seen elsewhere in the painting scheme of Jemez pottery.
Besides the traditional round pottery bowls and vases/jars, the Jemez potters also make pots in the shapes of turtle and frogs. These are usually decorated in the traditional geometric style and not in patterns seen on these animals in nature. The Jemez also make Storyteller figurines, in which the central large figure is surrounded by smaller listener figures. These are usually human, but can take the shape of animals or imaginary beings.
One of the newest trends in Jemez pottery is the friendship bowl. In these pottery pieces, four small figures are placed at four equidistant points on the rim of the pot. If the pot is shallow and open, the figures may recline on their backs in the pot. Other pots with higher walls may have the figures hanging on the outside of the pot with the head and shoulders above the pot rim so they can see each other. In some friendship bowls, the figure is reduced to just the head and shoulders and grow out of the rim of the bowl itself. Whatever the form, these are a nice addition to the traditional Jemez pottery world.
The heavily carved pottery by Marcella Yeppa and others is another new development in the Jemez pottery. These small to medium sized pots are heavily built so deep v-shaped valleys can be carved in the sides of the pots. The resulting melon shape can have the vanes vertical or twisted to the right or left. The pots made in this fashion are quite unique and very memorable.
Because of increased communication between Southwestern pueblos and First Peoples across the continent continues, the lines between styles of pottery continue to blur. Fortunately, the pottery makers of today usually sign their pieces with at least their initials and their tribe or pueblo of origin, which is significant as everyone experiments with other shapes and decorating styles.
Although many of the Jemez potters continue to use the traditional painting styles and colors, there are new forms and painting motifs coming into use. You can find their work in many stores that carry Native American pottery and artifacts. Look for the new and traditional styles as you build your collection of Jemez pottery.
The pottery on this page was photographed by the author.
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