SAN ILDEFONSO VASE ONE

Martha Appleleaf  is part of an illustrious family of San Ildefonso (Tewa: P’ohwhóge Owingehand) potters. Her aunt and mentor was Maria Martinez (Tewa: Po-Ve-Ka; 1887-1980), one of the most recognized and highly collected San Ildefonso potters of the last century. Maria had a long and distinguished history of producing and preserving the ancient pottery making techniques of the Southwester Pueblo tribes and passed these techniques down to her descendants including Martha, her mother Carmelita Dunlap, and her son Erik Fender, all eminent native potters in their own rights.
Martha specializes in black-on-black and innovative two-tone and polychrome pottery using various traditional techniques and local clays. She mixes her own clay and coils each piece by hand before sanding and polishing once the clay is dried. For painted pieces, Martha uses natural pigments made from native vegetation. Her work is highly valued and included in many public and private collections. Her pottery has earned numerous accolades including awards from the Santa Fe Indian Market and Eight Northern Pueblos Indian Arts and Crafts Council.
Martha’s pieces in our collection were acquired directly from the artist. Each displays her unique knife-wing/slip feather geometric patterns. The classic gloss black vases and ollas are painted with a verdigris clay slip that adds a subtle green coloration after the firing.