Camilio "Sunflower" Tafoya Sculptural Horse: Mare and Foal Black Ware Pottery

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This mare and foal is a rare and beautiful example of Camilio Tafoya's sculptural horses. The pottery is black-on-blackware. The … Read more This mare and foal is a rare and beautiful example of Camilio Tafoya's sculptural horses. The pottery is black-on-blackware. The manes and tail show examples of his deep carving style.

His horses are extremely difficult find. My research has only found one other sold in 2016 at auction.

In the 1960s, after his wife passed, Camilio stopped making his large, carved pots and his famous sculptural horses.

Camilio Tafoya (1902-1995) was born to Geronimo and Sarafina Tafoya of Santa Clara Pueblo. Like his sisters, Margaret Tafoya and Christina Naranjo, he grew up watching and helping his mother make pottery. His father, a wood carver, taught him to carve and Camilio adapted that learning to the carving of pottery. He learned to make his clay coils thicker and allow the pots to dry harder before beginning to carve them.
Camilio was one of the first men to become known as a potter in the pueblo. Many men helped their wives with different aspects of the process, like digging and processing the clay, scraping/sanding pots, gathering firewood and manure, firing the pots, etc., but Camilio did the whole process from end to end. See less