Hopi Pottery

Amongst my favorite pottery is that of the Native American Indian Hopi tribe.  I love the colors of their work.  And I like some of the ancient shapes of Hopi pottery in particular.

When I speak of color, take a look for example at pottery from the Zuni Indian.  They have a technique of using white clay that gives a completely different look and feel to their pottery.  It is stark and vivid.  Whereas the Hopi's gives the feel of warmth and a more earthiness to its quality.

Pottery Tastes

Okay, clearly what I like is just that -- what I like.  I lean toward the more inviting and warmth of the Earth when it comes to pottery.  Pieces of pottery that I collect are in my home on display and I like a soothing environment.  While I do enjoy a variety of pottery styles, colors, shapes, and even genre, the one I keep coming back to is the Hopi pottery.  I love going to Santa Fe, New Mexico and scouting out various shops looking at their Southwestern pottery wares.  With younger people from these Native families taking up pottery as an art form and creating new pieces, I'm finding plenty to look at, too.  Some of these younger potters are finding a variety of the older shapes and styles to take their inspiration from.  I am thrilled that this part of pottery making is not going to wind up as a lost art!

Collecting Pottery

I have to confess that my first pottery purchase was a shocker!  I had no clue at the prices some of these pieces fetch.  It's particularly disconcerting to me that I cannot actually use this work of art for much of anything other than to enjoy the sheer beauty of it.

Additionally, collecting most any type of pottery has been made easier today because of the Internet.  I strongly recommend dealing with reputable sellers like eBay where you have some recourse if there are any issues.  But you can do a quick search for just about whatever specialized pottery you want and come up with some decent leads to check out.

Pottery has been around for so long that there are numerous avenues to venture down for the collector.  I collect for pleasure and I collect what I like.  That said, I know people who have made a thriving business out of their collecting efforts.

 

Pottery throwing demonstration

Read more about this topic and have plenty of additional links for even further reading at Wikipedia when you click on POTTERY.