Cochiti Pueblo
Vangie Suina is a full blooded Native American Indian,
she was born in the mid-sixties into the Cochiti Pueblo.
Louise Suina, who is her mother, taught her all the fundamentals of
working with pottery artforms, from mixing the clay to hand building
the dolls using the ancient traditional hand coiling method, which has
been passed down through several generations of their people. Vangie
has been working with clay art since the age of 22.
She chose to become an artisan so that she could spend more time at
home with her children, husband, and it allows her to contribute her
unique style of art to the long lived legacy of her people.
Vangie specializes in contemporary storytellers, turtles, and drums.
Vangie gathers her raw materials from within the Cochiti Pueblo. She
soaks her clay and later mixes it with sand to temper it. When the clay
reaches the perfect consistency it is hand formed into a storyteller
figurine. Then, she sets her figures out to dry, the drying process
is a very delicate state in the making. Vangie needs to keep checking
her pieces so that they don’t crack and if they begin cracking
in the early stages she can easily repair and add more clay. Once the
figures are dry she places them on a grill outdoors with manure cakes
placed on top in an igloo fashion begins the baking process which lasts
about 2 hours depending on the size of the figures. When the baking
process is complete, she allows her pieces to cool down thoroughly and
she begins to hand paint them. She like to paint her figures after the
baking process because it allows her to decorate her art in vivid contemporary
hues and thus gives her a unique style all her own.
She signs her pottery as Vangie Suina, Cochiti.
Vangie is related to: Anthony Suina (husband), Dena Suina (sister-in-law),
and Louise Suina (mother).
Awards:
-Santa Fe Indian Market
-New Mexico State Fair
Publications:
-Southern Pueblo Pottery 2,000 Artist Biographies
-Southwest Art Magazine June 1983
-Santa fean Magazine August 1983
-Santa Fean Magazine December 1987
-The Pueblo Storyteller