Alvin Baca

(1966-Present) Pueblo: Santa Clara Pueblo Hand thrown traditional pottery is Alvin Baca’s specialty. He learned to make beautiful melon shaped pottery from his mother, acclaimed potter Angela Baca and his grandmother, Severa Tafoya. He began making pottery while a teenager in the early 1980s.  While his mother's melon pots are usually low and wide, Alvin's [...]

Celestina Naranjo

(c.1912-c.1996) Pueblo: Santa Clara Pueblo Celestina Naranjo is the daughter of Pasqualita Tafoya and the wife of Salvador Naranjo. Celestina is known for her redware and polychromes, as well as blackware.  Celestina's birth date is in question—somewhere between 1912 and 1925. She has exhibited at Santa Fe Indian Market and Eight Northern Indian Pueblos Arts [...]

Cliff Roller

(1961-Present) Pueblo: Santa Clara Pueblo “As one member of a large family of potters, I have strived to preserve the tradition of my ancestors, and feel that is reflected in my art.” —Cliff Roller As a sixth generation potter, Cliff Roller continues to make traditional Santa Clara carved black ware. Roller's work has been included [...]

Denise Chavarria

(1959-Present) Pueblo: Santa Clara Pueblo Denise Chavarria, from the Pueblo of Santa Clara-Tewa, began working with clay at the age of sixteen. She was inspired by her mother, Stella Chavarria, and her grandmother, Teresita Naranjo, to continue the long lived family tradition of making pottery using ancient traditional methods. Stella taught Denise the fundamentals of [...]

Dorothy and Paul Gutierrez

(1940- present) Pueblo: Santa Clara Pueblo The Gutierrez's are a husband and wife team that specializes in Native American Indian figurative pottery. Paul "White Corn" Gutierrez and Dorothy "Corn Maiden" Gutierrez are both full blooded Native American Indians; Paul was born in 1940 into the Santa Clara-Tewa Pueblo and Dorothy was born in 1940 as [...]

Jane Baca

(1919-2011) Pueblo: Santa Clara Pueblo Jane Baca  was born into a family of artists. She had two sisters, Legoria Tafoya and Pablita Velarde. Jane and Legoria were both potters, while Pablita became one of the first female Indian painters. As a pottery maker, she specialized in figurines. Her animal shaped figures won her and her [...]

Jason Ebelacker

(1980-Present) Pueblo: Santa Clara Pueblo   When asked to name the potters in his family, Jason thought about it for a second, then replied "Everyone." He is the son of Richard Ebelacker, grandson of Virginia Ebelacker, and great-grandson of the legendary Margaret Tafoya.  Jason's father, Richard Ebelacker, was an award-winning potter and Jason credits his [...]

Jeff Roller

(1963-Present)                                         Pueblo: Santa Clara Pueblo Jeff Roller, as a member of the sixth generation of potters in the Tafoya family from Santa Clara Pueblo, is known for his beautifully crafted and detailed lidded jars, as well as for his bronze sculptures. He learned to make pottery from his mother, Toni Roller, and from his [...]

Jordan Roller

(1987- Present)  Pueblo: Santa Clara Pueblo Jordan is a 7th generation potter. He learned from watching his grandmother, Toni Roller, and his father, Jeff Roller, who are award winning potters. His first efforts at making pottery were simple turtles. As Jordan grew, so did his skills at creating beautiful pottery. He is now an award [...]

Julie Gutierrez

(1965-Present)                                             Pueblo: Santa Clara Pueblo Inspired by her mother, Victoria Gutierrez, Julie began experimenting with pottery at the age of 12. Her mother and her aunts taught her all the fundamentals of working with natural clays and pigments so that she could continue the long lived tradition of working with clay. Julie specializes in traditional [...]

Margaret Tafoya

(1904 –2001) Pueblo: Santa Clara Pueblo Maria Margarita "Margaret" Tafoya was her given name, but her Tewa name was “Corn Blossom”. Margaret Tafoya, the matriarch of Santa Clara Pueblo potters,  learned the art of making pottery from her parents Sara Fina Tafoya (1863–1949) and Jose Geronimo Tafoya (1863–1955). Sara Fina was considered the leading potter [...]

Margie Naranjo

(1917 - 2006) Pueblo: Santa Clara Pueblo Margie Naranjo, Santa Clara Pueblo, was a member of the Naranjo family. Her mother, Santanita Suazo, was her inspiration. Santanita taught her daughter the fundamentals of pottery making. Her sisters, Mae Tapia-Suazo, Shirley Duran, and (Candelaria) Candy Suazo also make pottery.

Merton and Linda Sisneros

(c. 1949- Present) Pueblo: Santa Clara Pueblo Merton and Linda Sisneros are a married couple, each with a long heritage of pottery in the family. Together they carry on family traditions, and include the family crest (a triangle to symbolize three generations of potting) on their pottery. The couple does a few of the traditional [...]

Nancy Youngblood

(1955-Present) Pueblo: Santa Clara Pueblo The way I do it, is the way I was taught. I give it my all. The piece becomes a part of me and represents who I am." Nancy Youngblood is the granddaughter of Margaret Tafoya and daughter of Mela Youngblood.  She is a master crafts person and certainly one [...]