Oralia Lopez at Silver City Festival of Clay
John Bezy
Many SaddleBrooke residents have purchased the beautiful handmade pottery from Mata Ortiz, Chihuahua, Mexico. It is not commonly known, however, that these wonderful works of art are inspired by ancient Casas Grandes ceramics made by potters from the pre-Columbian city of Paquimé. One of the most important archaeological sites in northern Mexico and the American Southwest, Paquimé served as a conduit for religious ideas, crops, pottery making techniques and trade goods such as cotton textiles, pottery, parrots, parrot feathers and copper bells from southern Mexico into our Southwest. This Mexican trade impacted the culture of the Hohokam, Mogollon and Anasazi peoples of Arizona and New Mexico.
Paquimé was a religious center, with great temple mounds and a center for the production of cotton textiles, shell and turquoise jewelry and decorated pottery. Pieces of this pottery can be found around the numerous archaeological sites in the valleys of northwest Chihuahua, including the valley of the Palanganas River where Mata Ortiz is located. Beginning in the 1950s, young men such as Juan Quezada and Felix Ortiz began to experiment to see if they could reproduce this prehistoric pottery. By the 1970s they had learned how to form, paint and fire the vessels. Although these early pots were not finely made, sales to tourists generated income for these early artists.
Today, Mata Ortiz pottery is internationally known for its elegant forms, precision designs and beautiful colors. Many Mata Ortiz potters have incorporated designs from ancient Casas Grandes pots or from local petroglyphs into their work. Mata Ortiz pots grace thousands of private collections in Japan, Europe, Latin America, the U.S. and Canada.
Master artist Oralia Lopez has set the standard in Mata Ortiz for finely executed geometric pottery designs. She is most famous for her unique patterns of graduated squares and triangles. Her work is shown in the finest galleries and museums of the southwest. Oralia will be demonstrating her intricate painting technique using a brush made from fine human hair at the Catalina Farmers’ Market in Catalina Friday November 13 and Friday December 11, from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. It is amazing to watch her work. She will have a wonderful selection of work by many fine Mata Ortiz artists for purchase at reasonable prices.
John Bezy, who has accompanied many SaddleBrooke residents on trips to Mata Ortiz, will be available on these dates to answer any questions that you may have and to provide free appraisals for any Mata Otiz pottery that you care to bring. Please call John at 520-825-2451 if you have any questions.