Posted 10 years ago
Rosiegirl
(24 items)
This cutie has been hard to research. Picked it up at a yard sale. The signature is hard to decipher - Lidia Re? Ledro Re? Pedro Re? Ledio Re? I love how the design peaks under the bowl and connects geometrically. It is in fabulous condition - no chips etc.
I would love to learn more about this style of pottery as it is new to me. Just love the subtle black on black!
It is 4 1/2" wide and 2 1/2" tall.
Gorgeous!
Thanks! Can anyone help me figure out is it Mata Ortiz? San Ildefonso? Santa Clara? Has anyone heard of this artist?
It looks like Ildefonso Blackware. Maria & Julian Martinez, husband & wife started making this type of pottery c1930 and now their children and their childrens children have carried on this tradition of the unique, black on black pottery. She sometimes only signed her 1st name and it looked like "Marie" instead of Maria.
Mine has a signature on it but someone put earthquake gunk on the bottom! They are quite a treasure in American Indian pottery.
And it'd hard to see the signature but it may say Lupita, I can't really tell. If so, I think she was a daughter in law. Lupita Martinez.
That's supposed to be "it's" oops!
Thanks Shareurpassion! I'll do some research and see if it could be a descendant of Maria (wouldn't that be exciting!) but I can't see Lupita in the signature. The third letter is more likely a D than a P.
Found this great site http://www.mariajulianpottery.com/ArtistDirectory.cfm Lipita is listed but the signatures don't match :(
I just posted a better image of the signature in case that helps with ID.
It looks like Lydia? Lidia...it does ring a bell, but I can't put my finger on it at the moment. You may have to go into the family tree, so to say and dig there. Your piece is very nice. Wow, that could even say Pedro from what I can see. Now that's a jump isn't it??? I wish there was a law that would make artists sign a certain, simple way for us recipients---yeah right!!! Anyway, maybe the last name is initials Rc ??? It's still early in the game for you, someone may know for sure, but in the meantime, keep at it! Wish I could be more help.
I think I have solved this mystery...Lidia Renteria de Cota - Mata Ortiz. I am not 100% sure because the things I can find by her on the web have her full name in the signature and they don't match this style. Any Mata Ortiz collectors out there to let me know if this could be Lidia's work?
wow!!! lovely!!!
I realize this post is over 3 years old, but it still shows up on line when one does a search for "Lidia Renteria de Cota" or "Lidia R.C." Even though it is marked as "Solved" and Rosiegirl correctly identified this as Mata Ortiz pottery, some people are still using some of the "misinformation" contained here, perhaps because they aren't reading all the posts, and no one responded to the question if the identification was correct.
So, better late than never. Yes, as a long-time collector of Mata Ortiz pottery, and also a specialist in tribal and ethnic arts, I can confirm that this is Mexican (not Native American) pottery, made in the Mexican village of Mata Ortiz, by the well-known potter Lidia Renteria de Cota. She is listed in all the major references on Mata Ortiz pottery.
And I would add that Mata Ortiz pottery has only been on the market since the late 1970s/early 1980s. None of the nearly 400 potters working there today have any tribal affiliation, and the pottery is considered Mexican Art Pottery by the Mexican government, and those familiar with its background.
I stand corrected! Thank you CanyonRoad. I have a piece of black on black but don't know if it's anything at all as it looks very primitive and not as professional as many do. Also, being here in California, many people put that earthquake wax on the bottom of many of their items which does not come off well. I didn't remove it but someone tried and I have no idea if there was a signature on there or not. I will post it and hope you can take a look at it. haha I just went back up to see if I said it was for sure Mata Ortiz and thankfully I didn't say that but did say the same thing about the earthquake gunk.
Thank you so much, CanyonRoad for your comment. I appreciate you taking the time to confirm my research!
Earthquake putty is supposedly removable with more earthquake putty, or GooGone, or WD40. Try and see what happens! :)