Canyon Country Originals

		Art of the Southwest by Canyon Country Originals If you're a regular to our site or even if this is your first time and you'd like to know where to start, then this page is just for you! We hope that this will help in saving you time when browsing through our gallery. Perhaps this may even point you to the piece you've been looking for, the one with your name on it! Please keep in mind that this page will take several minutes to load unless you are running on a high-speed modem. Last updated, April 20, 2006 To order, call 1-800-401-1192, or 1-520-529-5545 if you are out of the United States, or go to our Order Page For an enlarged view of any picture, simply click on it. - All sizes are approx Item# P818 - Dorothy Torivio, Acoma One of her larger pieces, this "Yucca Leaf Pattern" seed jar is a true gem. Dorothy's idea for this design came from a humble yucca leaf, executed in a series of opposing spirals. Almost an optical illusion, the yucca leaves form a background pattern of a star. Her trademark is executing the same number of geometric shapes, regardless of the variance in circumference. This is a great example, with the geometric design remaining the same from the bottom, to the middle, to the top. Size: 5 1/4" high by 81/2" diameter. Price: $3,600. Item# P815 -Joseph & Barbara Cerno, Acoma. Joseph and Barbara Cerno are known for their polychrome artistry. For their central theme, they has chosen the classic Acoma parrot and double rainbow motifs, a design that has metamorphosed from the pre-historic Mimbres, to the 19th century historic, to the contemporary. They have done an extensive amount of decoration on this jar. Not only are the parrot an rainbow repeated on each side, but other artistry includes a rooster, and desert flowers including the yucca flower, sun flower and daisy. Usually the the Cernos make large pieces, by large we mean 24" to 30" in diameter. This represents one of their smaller ollas. (Olla is Spanish for water container, pronounced oy-ya.) Along with the Chino and Lewis families, the Cernos are recognized as premier Acoma potters. The Cernos use local clay, and form, paint and fire all their pottery using traditional methods. This is an exquisite, heavily decorated Cerno olla. Size: 6 1/4" high by 8 1/4" diameter. Price: $3,750. Item# P816 -Lonnie Vigil, Nambe. Lonnie Vigil is the Nambe potter. Winning the "Best of Classification" award at the 2005 Santa Fe Indian Market, Lonnie is known for his use of micaceous clay. His shapes are derived from classic cooking and storage ware used by people of his pueblo. His clay produces pottery with a soft, textured finish. Before returning to his pueblo, Lonnie earned a degree in business administration and built a career as a financial and business consultant in New Mexico and in Washington, DC. He claimed this was an empty life and when "Clay Mother" talked to him, he returned to the Nambe Pueblo. His great-grandmother and his great-aunts were all potters. Lonnie credits their guidance for his success. Now, he has become an acclaimed potter. Lonnie makes only a few of the smaller jars, and this is one of those rare exceptions. It is a chance for some collector to have a Vigil piece. Size: 7" high by 9" diameter. Price: $3,200. Item# P636 - Wilfred Garcia, Acoma Simple. Graceful. Elegant. This is our description of Wilfred's wedding vase. Kiva steps are designed into each of the top rims. Around the center is a chased border of three rows. Imagine this as a gift, or for yourself. Size: 12 3/4" high by 7 3/4" diameter. Price: $675. Item P759-Jacob Koopee, Hopi. Jake calls this jar "Courting Parrots." He depicts images of two parrots, on opposite quarters of this jar. On the other quarters, he shows symbols of rain and clouds. Jake gets many of his ideas from pottery shards found on the site of Sikyatki, a prehistoric village ruins near his First Mesa home. These have given him ideas for the rain and cloud symbols. However, for the parrots, Jake's idea came from looking at ancient murals painted in abandoned kivas. Archaeologists have determined that the prehistoric ancestors of the Hopis had a lively trade with Mesoamerica, and parrots and parrot feathers were part of this commerce. (By ancient, we are talking more or less one thousand years ago.) Inspiration for the hands came from Jake's exploration of near-by, ancient cliff dwellings.As a mark for "I have been here," these ancestors often laid their hands flat against the cliff walls, and then blew white pigments against their hands, making the hand-prints a lasting impression. What would you call this, an ancient "Kilroy was here"? Jake has the reputation of making some of the largest traditionally coiled, traditionally fired pottery on the Hopi Mesas. His innovative designs are gaining awards at the large art shows. Jake won Best of Show at the 2005 SWAIA Santa Fe Indian Market in August. And, he won Best of Show at the Heard Museum Show, March 2005. These back-to-back awards have placed him at the top-of-the-top among pottery artists. If you would like to see Jake's winning Indian Market piece, click here. Size: 4 3/4" high by 12 1/2" diameter. Price: $~~3,750~~ SOLD. Click Here to go to our Hopi pottery site and see other pottery by Hopi potters. Item# P761 - Steve Lucas, Hopi. "Buffaloe Kachina Mask." Steve frequently starts his designs by interpretating Hopi kachinas. Here, he gives us his creative idea of the Buffaloe kachina mask, face, horns, beard. Steve said that he "used a little artistic license." The four kachina masks are seperated by eagle feathers. This is a very contemporary design, and a rather large pot, for Steve. For the central motif, Steve says that it represents the four holly directions, and the four sacred winds. The beige color on this bowl is the natural color of the fired Hopi clay, polished with a smooth agate polishing stone (no slip at all). The rest of the pigments are vegetal and mineral paint made by Steve from elements found near his home in Polacca. He has used his "seceret formula" red micaceous color for accents. Size: 4 3/4" high by 10 1/2" diameter. Price: $~~6,500~~ SOLD. Click Here to go to our Hopi pottery site and see other pottery by Hopi potters. Item# P760 - Dawn Navasie, Hopi. For this flat-top jar, Dawn has chosen the Palhik Mana, a kachina that can be the Butterfly Maiden in one ceremony and the Water Maiden in another ceremony. The Hopis have a complex concept of numerology around the number four. Here, Dawn has illustrated four maidens, the four sacred directions, and the four seasons. She uses only traditional methods, which means that the clay form is first plished, and when fired the surface becomes the soft tan background. After the polish and before firing, she then applies the design using a yucca brush and mineral and vegetal paints. When traditionally fired, the colors turn into beauty you see here. This is one of her finest pieces. Dawn is is a member of a famous potting family, She is the daughter of the late Eunice "Fawn" Navasie. Her aunt is Joy Navasie, "Frog Woman." Her sisters are active podtters, Dolly Joe "White Swan" Navasie and Little Fawn Navasie, who now signs as Fawn. Size: 4 3/4" high by 101/2" wide. Price: $1,500. Click Here to go to our Hopi pottery site and see other pottery by Hopi potters. Item# P757 -Alice Cling, Navajo. Alice was raised and still lives in the area west of Kayenta, and north of Black Mesa. She and her family are among the few really good Navajo potters. Unfortunately, the Navajos were not recruited by the early railroad tourist promoters, like the potters from the Rio Grande pueblos, or the Acoma, Zuni, and Hopi Pueblos. So, Navajos made pottery for utilitarian purposes. Alice was trained in her art by her mother, Rose Williams, and by her aunt, Grace Barlow. These two potters pioneered in bring artistic proportions to Navajo pottery. Although Alice started making pottery as a young girl, she has not become a recognized potter until the last decade. She now makes wonderfully symmetric shapes is her style of simple, brown pottery. As with most Navajo pottery, each piece receives a final coating of pinion tree pitch, applied while the pot is still very warm. Size: 6 1/4" high by 7 1/2" diameter. Price: $960. Click Here to go to our pueblo pottery site and see other pottery by various pueblo potters. Item# P762 -Anita Suazo, Santa Clara. Anita's style is continuing to grow and evolve. In this tall vase, she has carved the design of a humming bird hovering above a flower. Here, she brings her sense of contemporary design to classic Santa Clara pottery. Anita uses only traditional coiling, carving and firing. To obtain the red, she has used an oxidation atmosphere, in other words, she did not smother this piece as it was being fired. The back of this jar is carved into a melon bowl design. Size: vase is 7" high by 4 1/2" diameter; lid is 2 1/4" high. Price: $~~2,800~~ SOLD. Click Here to go to our Santa Clara pottery site and see other pottery by various Santa Clara potters. Item# P766-Noreen Simplicio, Zuni. In our opinion, Noreen is one of the best Zuni potters. Although still young, she has been potting for 20 years. Her work is very imaginative. One of her trademarks is cliff dwelling village scenes in three dimension. Here, she has executed a cliff dwelling scene around the rim of this olla. She has carved this scene around both the inside and outside perimeter. For a close-up of the rim, click here. Additionally, she has painted the Zuni deer, birds, and the Zuni rosette design. The patterns repeat on each side of the olla. Size: 9" high by 7 1/4" diameter. Price: $850. Item# P786-Rachel Aragon, Acoma. Rachel in now in her mid-60s, and has been a potter for over 50 years. In this large, polychrome jar you see her geometrics with the Acoma/Mimbres parrot. This pattern is repeated on three sides. Between the parrot icon, you see her own interpretation of the four sacred directions, often seen in Zuni and Acoma pottery. This is a classic Acoma olla with the indented bottom, put there by the Acoma potters so that the olla is easier to balance on the head of the water carrier. She digs her own clay, makes her paints from local sources, and hand coils her jars. This jar is significantly larger than most Acoma jars. Size: 10" high by 11" diameter. Price: $990. Item# BN49 -Spirits Of The Ancients Bracelet. Nighthorse has designed this bracelet as an ode to the Ancients. The "sky" is filled with Anasazi rock art figures, spirits of the Ancients. The Rocky Mountains, even more ancient, are symbols of power and strength through the eons. The mountains are inlays of turquoise and coral. (Shown is sterling, also available in 18 kt. gold.) To see this piece and other jewelry by Ben Nighthorse, click here. Price: $1,150 in sterling silver. Item# J206-Wide Inner Beauty Bracelet, Cody Hunter, Navajo. The top of this super bracelet has a pebble finish surface, with contrasting, smooth , rock art figures in 14 kt gold overlay. Then there is the surprise–Inner Beauty. It is actually one of his other bracelets turned inside out, and covered as you see it, left. I asked my wife, "what good is that beauty if no one can see it?" Her answer, "I can see it!" It is a conversation piece, for sure, since she readily takes it off to show the inside. It always is greeted with great excitement. You may have your choice of horses, the canyon scene, or the storyteller scene. To see more of Cody Hunter's designs click here. Bracelet in 7/8" width: Price: $1,100, 14 kt gold on silver.

Art of the Southwest by Canyon Country Originals

If you're a regular to our site or even if this is your first time and you'd like to know where to start, then this page is just for you! We hope that this will help in saving you time when browsing through our gallery. Perhaps this may even point you to the piece you've been looking for, the one with your name on it!

Please keep in mind that this page will take several minutes to load unless you are running on a high-speed modem.

Last updated, April 20, 2006

To order, call 1-800-401-1192, or 1-520-529-5545 if you are out of the United States, or go to our
Order Page

For an enlarged view of any picture, simply click on it.
- All sizes are approx

Item# P818 - Dorothy Torivio, Acoma

One of her larger pieces, this "Yucca Leaf Pattern" seed jar is a true gem. Dorothy's idea for this design came from a humble yucca leaf, executed in a series of opposing spirals. Almost an optical illusion, the yucca leaves form a background pattern of a star. Her trademark is executing the same number of geometric shapes, regardless of the variance in circumference. This is a great example, with the geometric design remaining the same from the bottom, to the middle, to the top.
Size: 5 1/4" high by 81/2" diameter.
Price: $3,600.

Item# P815 -Joseph & Barbara Cerno, Acoma.

Joseph and Barbara Cerno are known for their polychrome artistry. For their central theme, they has chosen the classic Acoma parrot and double rainbow motifs, a design that has metamorphosed from the pre-historic Mimbres, to the 19th century historic, to the contemporary. They have done an extensive amount of decoration on this jar. Not only are the parrot an rainbow repeated on each side, but other artistry includes a rooster, and desert flowers including the yucca flower, sun flower and daisy. Usually the the Cernos make large pieces, by large we mean 24" to 30" in diameter. This represents one of their smaller ollas. (Olla is Spanish for water container, pronounced oy-ya.) Along with the Chino and Lewis families, the Cernos are recognized as premier Acoma potters. The Cernos use local clay, and form, paint and fire all their pottery using traditional methods. This is an exquisite, heavily decorated Cerno olla.
Size: 6 1/4" high by 8 1/4" diameter.
Price: $3,750.

Item# P816 -Lonnie Vigil, Nambe.

Lonnie Vigil is the Nambe potter. Winning the "Best of Classification" award at the 2005 Santa Fe Indian Market, Lonnie is known for his use of micaceous clay. His shapes are derived from classic cooking and storage ware used by people of his pueblo. His clay produces pottery with a soft, textured finish. Before returning to his pueblo, Lonnie earned a degree in business administration and built a career as a financial and business consultant in New Mexico and in Washington, DC. He claimed this was an empty life and when "Clay Mother" talked to him, he returned to the Nambe Pueblo. His great-grandmother and his great-aunts were all potters. Lonnie credits their guidance for his success. Now, he has become an acclaimed potter. Lonnie makes only a few of the smaller jars, and this is one of those rare exceptions. It is a chance for some collector to have a Vigil piece.
Size: 7" high by 9" diameter.
Price: $3,200.

Item# P636 - Wilfred Garcia, Acoma

Simple. Graceful. Elegant. This is our description of Wilfred's wedding vase. Kiva steps are designed into each of the top rims. Around the center is a chased border of three rows. Imagine this as a gift, or for yourself.
Size: 12 3/4" high by 7 3/4" diameter.
Price: $675.

Item P759-Jacob Koopee, Hopi. Jake calls this jar "Courting Parrots." He depicts images of two parrots, on opposite quarters of this jar. On the other quarters, he shows symbols of rain and clouds. Jake gets many of his ideas from pottery shards found on the site of Sikyatki, a prehistoric village ruins near his First Mesa home. These have given him ideas for the rain and cloud symbols. However, for the parrots, Jake's idea came from looking at ancient murals painted in abandoned kivas. Archaeologists have determined that the prehistoric ancestors of the Hopis had a lively trade with Mesoamerica, and parrots and parrot feathers were part of this commerce. (By ancient, we are talking more or less one thousand years ago.) Inspiration for the hands came from Jake's exploration of near-by, ancient cliff dwellings.As a mark for "I have been here," these ancestors often laid their hands flat against the cliff walls, and then blew white pigments against their hands, making the hand-prints a lasting impression. What would you call this, an ancient "Kilroy was here"? Jake has the reputation of making some of the largest traditionally coiled, traditionally fired pottery on the Hopi Mesas. His innovative designs are gaining awards at the large art shows. Jake won Best of Show at the 2005 SWAIA Santa Fe Indian Market in August. And, he won Best of Show at the Heard Museum Show, March 2005. These back-to-back awards have placed him at the top-of-the-top among pottery artists. If you would like to see Jake's winning Indian Market piece, click here.
Size: 4 3/4" high by 12 1/2" diameter.
Price: $~~3,750~~ SOLD.

Click Here to go to our Hopi pottery site and see other pottery by Hopi potters.

Item# P761 - Steve Lucas, Hopi.

"Buffaloe Kachina Mask." Steve frequently starts his designs by interpretating Hopi kachinas. Here, he gives us his creative idea of the Buffaloe kachina mask, face, horns, beard. Steve said that he "used a little artistic license." The four kachina masks are seperated by eagle feathers. This is a very contemporary design, and a rather large pot, for Steve. For the central motif, Steve says that it represents the four holly directions, and the four sacred winds. The beige color on this bowl is the natural color of the fired Hopi clay, polished with a smooth agate polishing stone (no slip at all). The rest of the pigments are vegetal and mineral paint made by Steve from elements found near his home in Polacca. He has used his "seceret formula" red micaceous color for accents.
Size: 4 3/4" high by 10 1/2" diameter.
Price: $~~6,500~~ SOLD.

Click Here to go to our Hopi pottery site and see other pottery by Hopi potters.

Item# P760 - Dawn Navasie, Hopi.

For this flat-top jar, Dawn has chosen the Palhik Mana, a kachina that can be the Butterfly Maiden in one ceremony and the Water Maiden in another ceremony. The Hopis have a complex concept of numerology around the number four. Here, Dawn has illustrated four maidens, the four sacred directions, and the four seasons. She uses only traditional methods, which means that the clay form is first plished, and when fired the surface becomes the soft tan background. After the polish and before firing, she then applies the design using a yucca brush and mineral and vegetal paints. When traditionally fired, the colors turn into beauty you see here. This is one of her finest pieces. Dawn is is a member of a famous potting family, She is the daughter of the late Eunice "Fawn" Navasie. Her aunt is Joy Navasie, "Frog Woman." Her sisters are active podtters, Dolly Joe "White Swan" Navasie and Little Fawn Navasie, who now signs as Fawn.
Size: 4 3/4" high by 101/2" wide.
Price: $1,500.

Click Here to go to our Hopi pottery site and see other pottery by Hopi potters.

Item# P757 -Alice Cling, Navajo.

Alice was raised and still lives in the area west of Kayenta, and north of Black Mesa. She and her family are among the few really good Navajo potters. Unfortunately, the Navajos were not recruited by the early railroad tourist promoters, like the potters from the Rio Grande pueblos, or the Acoma, Zuni, and Hopi Pueblos. So, Navajos made pottery for utilitarian purposes. Alice was trained in her art by her mother, Rose Williams, and by her aunt, Grace Barlow. These two potters pioneered in bring artistic proportions to Navajo pottery. Although Alice started making pottery as a young girl, she has not become a recognized potter until the last decade. She now makes wonderfully symmetric shapes is her style of simple, brown pottery. As with most Navajo pottery, each piece receives a final coating of pinion tree pitch, applied while the pot is still very warm.
Size: 6 1/4" high by 7 1/2" diameter.
Price: $960.

Click Here to go to our pueblo pottery site and see other pottery by various pueblo potters.

Item# P762 -Anita Suazo, Santa Clara.

Anita's style is continuing to grow and evolve. In this tall vase, she has carved the design of a humming bird hovering above a flower. Here, she brings her sense of contemporary design to classic Santa Clara pottery. Anita uses only traditional coiling, carving and firing. To obtain the red, she has used an oxidation atmosphere, in other words, she did not smother this piece as it was being fired. The back of this jar is carved into a melon bowl design.
Size: vase is 7" high by 4 1/2" diameter; lid is 2 1/4" high.
Price: $~~2,800~~ SOLD.

Click Here to go to our Santa Clara pottery site and see other pottery by various Santa Clara potters.

Item# P766-Noreen Simplicio, Zuni.

In our opinion, Noreen is one of the best Zuni potters. Although still young, she has been potting for 20 years. Her work is very imaginative. One of her trademarks is cliff dwelling village scenes in three dimension. Here, she has executed a cliff dwelling scene around the rim of this olla. She has carved this scene around both the inside and outside perimeter. For a close-up of the rim, click here. Additionally, she has painted the Zuni deer, birds, and the Zuni rosette design. The patterns repeat on each side of the olla.
Size: 9" high by 7 1/4" diameter.
Price: $850.

Item# P786-Rachel Aragon, Acoma.

Rachel in now in her mid-60s, and has been a potter for over 50 years. In this large, polychrome jar you see her geometrics with the Acoma/Mimbres parrot. This pattern is repeated on three sides. Between the parrot icon, you see her own interpretation of the four sacred directions, often seen in Zuni and Acoma pottery. This is a classic Acoma olla with the indented bottom, put there by the Acoma potters so that the olla is easier to balance on the head of the water carrier. She digs her own clay, makes her paints from local sources, and hand coils her jars. This jar is significantly larger than most Acoma jars.
Size: 10" high by 11" diameter.
Price: $990.

Item# BN49 -Spirits Of The Ancients Bracelet.

Nighthorse has designed this bracelet as an ode to the Ancients. The "sky" is filled with Anasazi rock art figures, spirits of the Ancients. The Rocky Mountains, even more ancient, are symbols of power and strength through the eons. The mountains are inlays of turquoise and coral. (Shown is sterling, also available in 18 kt. gold.) To see this piece and other jewelry by Ben Nighthorse, click here.
Price: $1,150 in sterling silver.

Item# J206-Wide Inner Beauty Bracelet, Cody Hunter, Navajo.

The top of this super bracelet has a pebble finish surface, with contrasting, smooth , rock art figures in 14 kt gold overlay. Then there is the surprise–Inner Beauty. It is actually one of his other bracelets turned inside out, and covered as you see it, left. I asked my wife, "what good is that beauty if no one can see it?" Her answer, "I can see it!" It is a conversation piece, for sure, since she readily takes it off to show the inside. It always is greeted with great excitement. You may have your choice of horses, the canyon scene, or the storyteller scene. To see more of Cody Hunter's designs click here.
Bracelet in 7/8" width:
Price: $1,100, 14 kt gold on silver.

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cainfo@canyonart.com