Virgil Ortiz Brings Pueblo Pottery to Paris

New Mexico artist Virgil Ortiz, from Cochiti Pueblo, recalls, “I learned pottery with my mother; my siblings and I never knew it was our work. Until I was 13, I had no idea it could represent work. I talked to the clay, and it talked to me.” Born in Santa Fe, Ortiz grew up in Cochiti Pueblo, where he still resides, “I live in Cochiti, because that is where my heart is: my family, the clay – All of it is there. And I am traditional, I take part in the ceremonies, I speak the language, so I stay in Cochiti.” Ortiz who made his first piece of pottery at six, descends from a long lineage of potters through his mother, Seferina. Artistic talent is also present from his father a drum maker. But in 2003, his work called the attention of fashion designer Dona Karan, who offered him to create a collection, as “she found inspiration in my decoration on the pottery. It was a very interesting, quick learning experience, to work with her, and see the whole process, from design to show room,” recalls Ortiz. After his first show in Paris, in 2001, L’Art populaire, Ortiz is back at the Cartier Fondation as part of an exhibit titled Histoires de voir: Show and Tell. His show Vertigo, involving, this time, his whole family – Dominic Ortiz, Guadalupe, Janice, and Kyle – will be open through October 21 with the rest of the exhibit. “I wanted to recreate the photo taken by Ben Wittick in 1880, where you see the work of unknown Cochiti potters of that period; as I am trying to revive the style of the 1800, specific to Cochiti Pueblo, to show that this tradition is still alive, in our Pueblo, today.”...more