Santa Clara Pottery- Mida Tafoya, CPOTJAF14-15

Mida Tafoya was born in 1931 and comes from a long line of Santa Clara potters. She is the granddaughter of Jose Geronimo and Sara Fina Gutierrez Tafoya. Her aunt is Margaret Tafoya and uncle is Camilo Tafoya. She is the daughter of Christaina Naranjo. She began to make pottery in 1945 and made carved blackware jars, bowls and wedding vases(Schaaf, pg. 119). She enjoys making pottery and working with Mother Earth. She mentions in an interview in Dillingham's book, "Fourteen Families in Pueblo Pottery",  about how her mother taught her how to speak to the clay and shape it.(pg. 231). She passed her knowledge down to her family. 

A Santa Clara pot by Mida Tafoya. This pot has thick walls and a heavy base. The incisions for the design are deep and have no damage.  There is some minor scuffing but this pot is whole. There is signature on the bottom of the pot. This is an elegant pot to add to your collection.

1. Dillingham, Rick. "Fourteen Families in Pueblo Pottery". (1994) University of New Mexico Press.

2. Schaaf, Gregory. "Pueblo Indian Pottery 750 Artist Biographies". (2000) Center for Indigenous Arts & Cultures Press.