School for Advanced Research

Grounded in Clay: Diego Medina

Diego Medina (Piro-Manso-Tiwa) is an artist and writer from Las Cruces, New Mexico. In this podcast, he sits down with this tiny Piro jar to explore the monumental history of his community within what is now central New Mexico.
Originating in the cradle of the Indigenous Southwest, Grounded in Clay: The Spirit of Pueblo Pottery is a rare exhibition curated by the Native American communities it represents. The project gives authority and voice to the Pueblo Pottery Collective, a group of over 60 individual members of 21 tribal communities who selected and wrote about artistically or culturally distinctive pots from two significant Pueblo pottery collections—the Indian Arts Research Center of the School for Advanced Research (SAR) in Santa Fe and the Vilcek Foundation of New York.
Organized by SAR and the Vilcek Foundation, Grounded in Clay debuts July 31, 2022, on unceded Tewa Indian lands at the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture in Santa Fe before traveling nationally in 2023. The exhibition celebrates the 100th anniversary of the creation of SAR’s Indian Arts Research Center’s pottery collection in 1922. As SAR’s first traveling exhibition, it also marks the institution’s multi-year efforts to bridge the cultural needs and knowledge of Native communities with its public education mission. For more information, visit groundedinclay.org
This project was supported by the Henry Luce Foundation.

Grounded in Clay: Clarence Cruz

Clarence Cruz/Khaayay (Tewa/Ohkay Owingeh) is Assistant Professor in the Art Department at the University of New Mexico. He is also a traditional potter and in 2020 was a recipient of a Luce Indigenous Knowledge Fellowship. In this podcast, Clarence explores his relationship to pottery via this jar made by Veronica C. Cruz (IAF.2122).
Originating in the cradle of the Indigenous Southwest, Grounded in Clay: The Spirit of Pueblo Pottery is a rare exhibition curated by the Native American communities it represents. The project gives authority and voice to the Pueblo Pottery Collective, a group of over 60 individual members of 21 tribal communities who selected and wrote about artistically or culturally distinctive pots from two significant Pueblo pottery collections—the Indian Arts Research Center of the School for Advanced Research (SAR) in Santa Fe and the Vilcek Foundation of New York.
Organized by SAR and the Vilcek Foundation, Grounded in Clay debuts July 31, 2022, on unceded Tewa Indian lands at the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture in Santa Fe before traveling nationally in 2023. The exhibition celebrates the 100th anniversary of the creation of SAR’s Indian Arts Research Center’s pottery collection in 1922. As SAR’s first traveling exhibition, it also marks the institution’s multi-year efforts to bridge the cultural needs and knowledge of Native communities with its public education mission. For more information, visit groundedinclay.org
This project was supported by the Henry Luce Foundation.

Grounded in Clay: Jason Garcia

Jason Garcia/Okuu Pin (Tewa/Santa Clara Pueblo) is a potter, ceramicist, printmaker, painter, father, son, brother, uncle, and an alumnus of the universities of New Mexico and Wisconsin. In this podcast, Jason discusses Avanyu and the importance of water via this Santa Clara vase made by Lela and Luther Gutierrez circa 1963, and his relationship to pottery via this Santa Clara jar made in the 1930s (IAF.2628).
Originating in the cradle of the Indigenous Southwest, Grounded in Clay: The Spirit of Pueblo Pottery is a rare exhibition curated by the Native American communities it represents. The project gives authority and voice to the Pueblo Pottery Collective, a group of over 60 individual members of 21 tribal communities who selected and wrote about artistically or culturally distinctive pots from two significant Pueblo pottery collections—the Indian Arts Research Center of the School for Advanced Research (SAR) in Santa Fe and the Vilcek Foundation of New York.
Organized by SAR and the Vilcek Foundation, Grounded in Clay debuts July 31, 2022, on unceded Tewa Indian lands at the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture in Santa Fe before traveling nationally in 2023. The exhibition celebrates the 100th anniversary of the creation of SAR’s Indian Arts Research Center’s pottery collection in 1922. As SAR’s first traveling exhibition, it also marks the institution’s multi-year efforts to bridge the cultural needs and knowledge of Native communities with its public education mission. For more information, visit groundedinclay.org
This project was supported by the Henry Luce Foundation.

Grounded in Clay: Albert Alvidrez

Albert Alvidrez is a former Governor of Ysleta del Sur Pueblo and a tribal potter, artist, historian, pottery collector, mentor, leader, and community activist. In this podcast, Albert explores the complex history of his community through this bowl by Juana Ortega Munoz circa 1880-1920 (IAF.821.)
Originating in the cradle of the Indigenous Southwest, Grounded in Clay: The Spirit of Pueblo Pottery is a rare exhibition curated by the Native American communities it represents. The project gives authority and voice to the Pueblo Pottery Collective, a group of over 60 individual members of 21 tribal communities who selected and wrote about artistically or culturally distinctive pots from two significant Pueblo pottery collections—the Indian Arts Research Center of the School for Advanced Research (SAR) in Santa Fe and the Vilcek Foundation of New York.
Organized by SAR and the Vilcek Foundation, Grounded in Clay debuts July 31, 2022, on unceded Tewa Indian lands at the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture in Santa Fe before traveling nationally in 2023. The exhibition celebrates the 100th anniversary of the creation of SAR’s Indian Arts Research Center’s pottery collection in 1922. As SAR’s first traveling exhibition, it also marks the institution’s multi-year efforts to bridge the cultural needs and knowledge of Native communities with its public education mission. For more information, visit groundedinclay.org
This project was supported by the Henry Luce Foundation.

Grounded in Clay: Kathleen Wall

Kathleen Wall is an artist, mother, and wife in Jemez Pueblo. She carries on the matrilineal tradition of being a clay artist. Her art, although grounded in ancestral process and techniques, is found at the intersection of traditional and contemporary. In this podcast, Kathleen shares about her relationship with pottery through a Nativity set created by her aunt, Mary Elizabeth Toya around 1982.
Originating in the cradle of the Indigenous Southwest, Grounded in Clay: The Spirit of Pueblo Pottery is a rare exhibition curated by the Native American communities it represents. The project gives authority and voice to the Pueblo Pottery Collective, a group of over 60 individual members of 21 tribal communities who selected and wrote about artistically or culturally distinctive pots from two significant Pueblo pottery collections—the Indian Arts Research Center of the School for Advanced Research (SAR) in Santa Fe and the Vilcek Foundation of New York.
Organized by SAR and the Vilcek Foundation, Grounded in Clay debuts July 31, 2022, on unceded Tewa Indian lands at the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture in Santa Fe before traveling nationally in 2023. The exhibition celebrates the 100th anniversary of the creation of SAR’s Indian Arts Research Center’s pottery collection in 1922. As SAR’s first traveling exhibition, it also marks the institution’s multi-year efforts to bridge the cultural needs and knowledge of Native communities with its public education mission. For more information, visit groundedinclay.org
This project was supported by the Henry Luce Foundation.

Grounded in Clay: Lonnie Vigil, Part Two

Lonnie Vigil is a traditional potter from Nambe Pueblo. Here, he reflects on a jar from Picuris Pueblo made in the 1920s (IAF.3089).
Originating in the cradle of the Indigenous Southwest, Grounded in Clay: The Spirit of Pueblo Pottery is a rare exhibition curated by the Native American communities it represents. The project gives authority and voice to the Pueblo Pottery Collective, a group of over 60 individual members of 21 tribal communities who selected and wrote about artistically or culturally distinctive pots from two significant Pueblo pottery collections—the Indian Arts Research Center of the School for Advanced Research (SAR) in Santa Fe and the Vilcek Foundation of New York.
Organized by SAR and the Vilcek Foundation, Grounded in Clay debuts July 31, 2022, on unceded Tewa Indian lands at the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture in Santa Fe before traveling nationally in 2023. The exhibition celebrates the 100th anniversary of the creation of SAR’s Indian Arts Research Center’s pottery collection in 1922. As SAR’s first traveling exhibition, it also marks the institution’s multi-year efforts to bridge the cultural needs and knowledge of Native communities with its public education mission.
For more information, visit groundedinclay.org
This project was supported by the Henry Luce Foundation.

Grounded in Clay: Lonnie Vigil, Part One

Lonnie Vigil is a traditional potter from Nambe Pueblo. Here, he reflects on a jar from his community made around 1900 (IAF.103).
Originating in the cradle of the Indigenous Southwest, Grounded in Clay: The Spirit of Pueblo Pottery is a rare exhibition curated by the Native American communities it represents. The project gives authority and voice to the Pueblo Pottery Collective, a group of over 60 individual members of 21 tribal communities who selected and wrote about artistically or culturally distinctive pots from two significant Pueblo pottery collections—the Indian Arts Research Center of the School for Advanced Research (SAR) in Santa Fe and the Vilcek Foundation of New York.
Organized by SAR and the Vilcek Foundation, Grounded in Clay debuts July 31, 2022, on unceded Tewa Indian lands at the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture in Santa Fe before traveling nationally in 2023. The exhibition celebrates the 100th anniversary of the creation of SAR’s Indian Arts Research Center’s pottery collection in 1922. As SAR’s first traveling exhibition, it also marks the institution’s multi-year efforts to bridge the cultural needs and knowledge of Native communities with its public education mission. For more information, visit groundedinclay.org
This project was supported by the Henry Luce Foundation.

Grounded in Clay: Max Early, Part Two

Max Early received his MFA in Creative Writing (Poetry) from the Institute of American Indian Arts, Santa Fe, in 2020. He is a published poet and established potter from Laguna Pueblo. In this podcast, Max explores the story of two-spirit potter Arroh-a-och and this magnificent storage jar created by them around 1870-1880 (IAF.1026).
Originating in the cradle of the Indigenous Southwest, Grounded in Clay: The Spirit of Pueblo Pottery is a rare exhibition curated by the Native American communities it represents. The project gives authority and voice to the Pueblo Pottery Collective, a group of over 60 individual members of 21 tribal communities who selected and wrote about artistically or culturally distinctive pots from two significant Pueblo pottery collections—the Indian Arts Research Center of the School for Advanced Research (SAR) in Santa Fe and the Vilcek Foundation of New York.
Organized by SAR and the Vilcek Foundation, Grounded in Clay debuts July 31, 2022, on unceded Tewa Indian lands at the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture in Santa Fe before traveling nationally in 2023. The exhibition celebrates the 100th anniversary of the creation of SAR’s Indian Arts Research Center’s pottery collection in 1922. As SAR’s first traveling exhibition, it also marks the institution’s multi-year efforts to bridge the cultural needs and knowledge of Native communities with its public education mission. For more information, visit groundedinclay.org
This project was supported by the Henry Luce Foundation.

Grounded in Clay: Max Early, Part One

Max Early received his MFA in Creative Writing (Poetry) from the Institute of American Indian Arts, Santa Fe, in 2020. He is a published poet and established potter from Laguna Pueblo. In this podcast, Max recollects following the history of this dough bowl as it found homes in several collection before finally landing at the Vilcek Foundation collection in New York City (VF2014.01.01). Toward the end of the recording, Max does a reading of "Convergence of Clay," a tribute to this special bowl.
Originating in the cradle of the Indigenous Southwest, Grounded in Clay: The Spirit of Pueblo Pottery is a rare exhibition curated by the Native American communities it represents. The project gives authority and voice to the Pueblo Pottery Collective, a group of over 60 individual members of 21 tribal communities who selected and wrote about artistically or culturally distinctive pots from two significant Pueblo pottery collections—the Indian Arts Research Center of the School for Advanced Research (SAR) in Santa Fe and the Vilcek Foundation of New York.
Organized by SAR and the Vilcek Foundation, Grounded in Clay debuts July 31, 2022, on unceded Tewa Indian lands at the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture in Santa Fe before traveling nationally in 2023. The exhibition celebrates the 100th anniversary of the creation of SAR’s Indian Arts Research Center’s pottery collection in 1922. As SAR’s first traveling exhibition, it also marks the institution’s multi-year efforts to bridge the cultural needs and knowledge of Native communities with its public education mission.
This project was supported by the Henry Luce Foundation.

Grounded in Clay: Rose B. Simpson

Rose B. Simpson (Santa Clara) is an artist, public speaker, and mom. In this podcast, Rose explores her relationship to pottery via this Santa Clara water jar from around 1880-1900 (IAF.414).
Originating in the cradle of the Indigenous Southwest, Grounded in Clay: The Spirit of Pueblo Pottery is a rare exhibition curated by the Native American communities it represents. The project gives authority and voice to the Pueblo Pottery Collective, a group of over 60 individual members of 21 tribal communities who selected and wrote about artistically or culturally distinctive pots from two significant Pueblo pottery collections—the Indian Arts Research Center of the School for Advanced Research (SAR) in Santa Fe and the Vilcek Foundation of New York.
Organized by SAR and the Vilcek Foundation, Grounded in Clay debuts July 31, 2022, on unceded Tewa Indian lands at the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture in Santa Fe before traveling nationally in 2023. The exhibition celebrates the 100th anniversary of the creation of SAR’s Indian Arts Research Center’s pottery collection in 1922. As SAR’s first traveling exhibition, it also marks the institution’s multi-year efforts to bridge the cultural needs and knowledge of Native communities with its public education mission. For more information, visit https://groundedinclay.org
This project was supported by the Henry Luce Foundation.