Santa Clara-Tewa/Pima Pueblo
Dolores Lewis was born in 1938 into the Acoma Sky
City Pueblo. She is one of the daughters of the world renowned late,
Lucy M. Lewis.
Dolores has been around great pottery artists her whole life, however,
her greatest inspiration came down from her mother, Lucy. Dolores was
a self taught artisan, she learned the ancient traditional methods of
working with clay by carefully observing Lucy construct her beautiful
pottery vessels.
Dolores chose to continue the long lived tradition of working with pottery,
and using the ancient methods passed down to her from her grandmothers
because of the importance to keep her peoples traditions alive. Dolores
gathers her own natural pigments and clays from the clay pits within
the Acoma Pueblo. She cleans her clay for impurities by hand, then,
she hand mixes, hand coils, hand paints, and uses a traditional firing
method to add the finishing touch to her wonderful masterpieces which
mother earth has blessed her with.
The Lewis family keeps the same patterns and does not move to a contemporary
style because it is very important to them to keep alive true traditions
and designs of the ancient mimbres people alive. Some of these designs
which are replicated are the deer with a heartline, lightning bolt pattern,
and the many variations of the mimbres patterns. Lucy was the driving
force behind the revival of pottery making as an art in the Pueblo of
the Acoma. Dolores is also related to Emma Lewis-Mitchell, Carmel Lewis
(sisters), and Drew Lewis (brother).
Publications:
There are many books on Lucy M. Lewis and her daughters, information
on these fine artisans can be found in:
-Southern Pueblo Pottery 2,000 Artist Biographies
-Fourteen Families in pueblo pottery
-Southwestern pottery Anasazi to Zuni
-Talking with the Clay
-American Indian Pottery 2nd Edition
-Seven Families in Pueblo Pottery
Awards:
-Santa Fe Indian Market Various 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Place numerous years
-Eight Northern 1st various years
-Heard Museum show
-New Mexico State Fair
-Others received too many to list
