Lori Smith Navajo Etched Pottery — Sun Face & Kokopelli, 59 Turquoise Stones View Watchlist >
- Winning Bid: $268.00
- 21 Bid(s) View Bid History
- High Bidder: RB
Seller Accepts Credit Cards
Payment and pickup instructions will be available on your invoice (under "My Account") at the conclusion of this auction.
Lot # C673
System ID # 27229657
Start Date
End Date
9 Watching
Lori Smith Navajo Etched Pottery — Sun Face & Kokopelli, 59 Turquoise Stones
Large globe-form pottery vessel by Navajo artist Lori Smith, signed and tribally identified on the base, purchased from Bien Mur Indian Market Center in 2019. Smith was born near Gallup, New Mexico and began her craft at 13 — self-taught by observation, practicing in secret. Her process starts with an unfired red clay pot: sanded, hand-painted, underglazed, etched, and fired. She describes her work as embodying the three Navajo values of hózhó — Beauty, Harmony, and Balance.
One face centers a polychrome Tawa sun face kachina within a radiating feather medallion, encircled by Kokopelli figures on a textured matte ground. The opposing face presents the same sun medallion framed by stepped cloud forms, meander, arc-and-feather, and wave registers. Fifty-nine 15mm turquoise cabochons are inlaid as accent points throughout both compositions.
CONDITION
Excellent. Carving is crisp and fully intact across all registers, all 59 turquoise inlays are secure, and the hand-painted polychrome on the sun face shows no lifting, loss, or crazing. No chips, cracks, or repairs.
DIMENSIONS / SPECIFICATIONS
- Height: 11.5"
- Diameter: 12"
- Weight: approximately 8 lbs.
- Form: Closed globe with small circular aperture
- Technique: Sgraffito (hand-etched and hand-painted) on polychrome-slipped red clay
- Turquoise Inlay: 59 cabochons × 15mm each
- Signature: "L. Smith / Navajo" carved into base
- Provenance: Bien Mur Indian Market Center, 2019 — $550 original retail
- Campbell's Soup Can (4" H) Shown for Scale
Please Note: Soup Shown for Scale in Photo
