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Indo/Hispano Art: Making Connections Through Hands-On Activities
Lisa Gillett
Creativity is an essential in every aspect of life.
It is not a thing apart or special, but that very necessary element which makes life
productive and, hence, worthwhile and meaningful.
-- Rina Swentzell
Santa Clara Pueblo
Academic Setting
The following curriculum is for a unit in a high school beginning Art 1 class. My student population is as diverse as the culture and population of New Mexico. The majority of my students are Hispanic. Most of them come from lower to middle class families and some of them are ESL students, who speak very little English. A small portion of my student population consists of African Americans, Anglos, Native Americans and Asians. The curriculum will revolve around their lives and collective histories. Through art activities, my students will gain a better and fuller understanding of their own ethnic backgrounds as they study New Mexico’s vast cultural heritage.
The lessons I create will explore Native American art and Hispanic art in New Mexico. Through various art lessons the students will recognize cross-cultural influences that existed from the time of the Spanish arrival in New Mexico during the sixteenth century. The students will uncover the underlying themes and early technologies of the two cultures. They will see how the themes and technologies overlap and intertwine in the art work being shown and discussed. For each hands-on art activity, I will present a colorful and exciting introduction that gives a history of the type of art work being studied. Before I introduce the individual lessons I will talk about the Spaniards’ initial arrival in New Mexico and how that changed the lives of the people living in the area then and how it affects New Mexico artists’ lives today.
Background
The arrival of Francisco Vasquez de Coronado in the Rio Grande Valley marked the beginning of the Historic Period in New Mexico. In search of the Seven Cities of Gold, Coronado’s expedition found only villages of the Pueblo Indians. Early Spanish explorations of the Southwest led the way for Don Juan de Oņate to colonize the territory in 1598. The Spanish pioneers were determined to stay in the area and they settled down to a distressed coexistence with the Indians (Berlant and Kahlenberg 32). From the beginning of the 1600s onward, the increasing influence of the Spanish changed the direction and pace of development of Pueblo Indian culture. The Spanish introduced domestic animals, metal tools, firearms, and a new and powerful religion. They also exposed the Pueblo Indians to diseases and institutions of economic and religious oppression that resulted in extensive discontent, which eventually lead to the Pueblo Revolt in 1680 (Ware 1). The Pueblo Revolt was successful and the Spaniards were forced out of New Mexico, but they returned twelve years later. In 1692, the Spanish reentered the Rio Grande Valley, and for one hundred and thirty years their domination was never seriously challenged.
During the Historic Period, approximately 1598-1880, the Pueblo and Navajo Indians became increasingly dominated and influenced by the Spaniards. The foreign influences on the indigenous peoples of New Mexico are reflected in the changes and innovations in the arts: weaving, jewelry, and pottery. These changes can be accounted for as a result of trade, the introduction of new technologies, and access to new materials.
When Coronado entered the Pueblo Southwest in 1540, he was pleased to discover a local
weaving industry. The Pueblo Indians that Coronado encountered used their native cotton to
make various articles of clothing. When Coronado left in 1542, he left behind a few sheep.
These sheep probably didn’t affect native weaving, but the Andalusian churro sheep
introduced in 1598 with the arrival of Oņate caused a profound change in Pueblo and
Navajo weaving. The churro sheep produced a long, nearly straight staple, lustrous, and
virtually grease-free type of wool, ideal for hand-spinning methods (Wheat 201). From that
time onward, wool became the dominant material used for weaving. The Spanish also
introduced a variety of natural dyes, like indigo, to the Native people’s already
existing natural pigments. The Spanish introduced wool and dye, but they did not have any
effect on the Pueblo looms. The Spaniards built their own looms similar to the European
horizontal-bed, treadle loom and the Pueblos 
continued
using their vertical looms.
Navajos began weaving when the Spaniards brought churro sheep to their lands. Prior to that time the Navajos were nomadic hunters and gatherers. They soon learned to cultivate crops from the Pueblos and undertook the semi-nomadic life of pastoralists (Kent 96). Intermarriages between the Navajo and Pueblo occurred and by 1650, Navajo women had learned the art of weaving from their Pueblo husbands. Navajo legend tells a different story about how the Navajos learned to weave.
According to the Navajo origin myth, most of which was adapted from the Pueblo, there are two types of people, the Holy people and their creation, the people on Earth. The Navajo believe Spider Woman, a mythic goddess and one of the Holy people, taught the Navajo people how to weave. Spider Woman embodied a spiritual weaving tradition passed on from mother to daughter for generations (Berlant and Kahlenberg 41). At the heart of the Navajo world view is the belief that their ancestors came out of the Earth. The blankets they wove are like the ancestors of the people who made them. The Navajo and Pueblo weave their blankets on upright looms, from bottom to top. The blankets, like their ancestors, are drawn out of the earth (Berlant and Kahlenberg 3).
It has been discovered that the Navajo wove personal items, like hair, feathers, and pieces of dollar bills into their rugs. The Navajo believed the items in the rugs would protect loved ones who took a rug with them on a long journey. The secret, hidden items nestled tightly in the layers would bring them luck and insure a safe return (Zolbrod 22). The feathers symbolize freedom. They represented the Navajo feelings of wanting to go back to the "old ways" after being oppressed by the Spanish.
The Spaniards, Navajos, and Pueblos all influenced each other’s design schemes for blankets in the Historic Period. Therefore the blankets underwent many stylistic changes, especially during the Classic Period. The term "classic" refers to blankets dating between the 1800s to the mid-1860s, before the arrival of the Americans into Navajo country (Berlant and Kahlenberg 61). The classic blanket styles are stripe, chief, and serape.
As Americans began pouring into the Southwest with the coming of the railroad in 1880, their influence dominated Navajo weaving. The Americans introduced commercial yarns and packaged aniline dyes in a range of colors unknown to weavers in the early 1800s. As tourists began arriving via the railroad and trading continued, the Navajo weavers were exploited by the Americans. They demanded that hundreds of blankets be woven to meet the increased demand for them. The demand for product took the importance and beauty out of the Navajo weavers’ process (Berlant and Kahlenberg 141). As a result, the quality and appearance of the blankets began to deteriorate. In the last half of the nineteenth and early part of the twentieth centuries, the United States government introduced a new breed of sheep to the Navajo reservations with the hope of increasing the yield of wool and meat. The new sheep polluted the native churro sheep. The wool of the new breed tended to be kinky and greasy and took dye poorly (Kent 101). By the 1920s the quality of Navajo weavings had weakened remarkably.
Beauty is an important concept in many Native American cultures. To the Navajo, beauty is in the nature of things, as well as in the people. They believed the gods made this world to be a beautiful, harmonious, happy, and healthy place. To be maintained, beauty needs to be expressed and renewed in ritual song, art, speech, dress and daily living (Anderson 104). Silver jewelry represents the Navajo desire for beauty. It is universal that people like to adorn themselves; they like to walk in beauty and radiate beauty. Navajos were the first Indian silversmiths of the Southwest. They learned their craft from the Mexicans in the 1860s. The Mexicans had learned it from the Spanish. Early Navajo concha belts, buttons, bow guards, necklaces, and bridles reflected designs that the Native American silversmiths had borrowed from the Mexicans.
In 1540, when Coronado led the first white explorers to the Southwest, he found the inhabitants still living in the age of stone. The conquistadors briefly introduced metals to a few Pueblo Indians who helped them build churches, but three hundred years passed before any of the Southwest Indians worked with the foreign material. The Navajo and Pueblos lived in isolated desert lands; exposure to other cultures like the Spanish happened randomly. Their knowledge of metalworking was acquired gradually: from a Mexican friend, by watching a United States army blacksmith, and from trial and error. The Southwest Indians did work with copper, brass, and iron, but it was the work done with silver, the "metal of the moon", that brought out the artistic genius of the craftsmen. Atsidi Sani, the first Navajo ironsmith, also became the first Southwest Indian to work with silver. It is believed that he acquired his knowledge of silversmithing between 1853 ad 1858 (Bedinger 13).
At the end of 1869, the Navajos resettled in their old territories after being exiled
at Fort Sumner by Kit Carson and the United States government. Throughout the reservation
trade and travel became possible. This freedom had great relevance to silversmithing,
because trade gave the Indians metal and travel brought plateros, Mexican silversmiths.
Silver came to the Navajo in the form of coins and they also acquired solder (Bedinger
17). The tools and technology of the time were very crude. The tools were primitive and
limiting, and the conditions the artisans worked under had very poor lighting. The art of
making jewelry is very precise and one depends on the eyes for every part of the process.
Poor lighting caused many silversmiths who spent years devoted to the art
of jewelry making to be prone to blindness.
Some popular silver ornaments found on necklaces were najas and squash blossoms. Both designs came from the Mexicans, who copied them from the Spanish and the Moors. A naja is a horseshoe shaped ornament that hangs in the center of a necklace. Navajos also used naja to decorate the bridles of their horses (Hunt 138). Naja is an anglicized form of the Navajo word for "crescent." The squash blossom is a round bead with a flat, oblong shank pierced by a hole through which the string passes. Opposite the shank, several petal-shaped pieces of silver that curve up and out are soldered together, creating a floral form. The term "squash blossom" has been used for many years to describe this form, but the bead does not resemble the trumpet-like flower of a squash. The bead looks more like the fruit of a pomegranate. Beads of this sort were originally ornaments found on Spanish-Mexican trousers and jackets (Fox 80). The pomegranate symbol has been a favorite Spanish decorative motif for centuries.
The fundamental characteristics that Navajo jewelry embodies are simplicity and strength, as well as proportion and balance. These characteristics are still upheld in the Navajo jewelry we find today. Another Southwest Indian art form that has been preserved throughout the centuries is pottery. Descendants of the potters and silversmiths during the Historic Period carry on the traditions today and often share their knowledge of the traditions with others.
Pueblo pottery of the Historic Period, made from 1600 to about 1880, is especially beautiful. The Spaniards had difficulty importing ceramic vessels to the rugged, southwestern frontier, so they had to use Pueblo pottery to carry out their daily chores. The merging existence of the Spaniards and the Pueblo Indians resulted in significant restrictions in the usage of pottery and also led to the disappearance of most of the pottery in the first two hundred years of the Historic Period. The dominating church authorities refused to allow the Pueblo Indians to bury pottery with their dead as they had been doing in accordance with their ancient custom for years. They were forced to have Christian burials in cemeteries and as a result there is almost no Historic pottery preserved in the security of old graves. When the burial of pottery was prohibited, the Pueblo Indians were forced to make pottery solely for utilitarian purposes. The pots were used for food and water storage and cooking. Only a few ceremonial vessels were made in secrecy. They were carefully guarded and used only in religious occasions closed to outsiders (Frank and Harlow 6). The pottery for everyday use was utilized until it was damaged and then it was thrown away.
Pueblo pottery is made from clay dug from deposits near the Pueblos. The clay is tempered with finely powdered material, like sand, so that it does not crack when the piece is being formed (Frank 11). The Pueblo Indians did not have potter’s wheels. When potter’s wheels were accessible to the Native Americans, they refused to use them. All of their pottery was hand built. The hand building method they used is called coiling. They used many methods for finishing and decorating their pieces. There are numerous ways of adding design elements to pottery. Usually the coils were smoothed and designs were either scratched into it, or pigments were added after the piece was fired. Some of the pieces have a glaze finish and some have a matte finish. The motifs most often found on pottery were feathers, volutes, star patterns, flowers, circles, clouds, suns and animal figures. The images reveal how centered the Pueblos were in their own mythology and how tenaciously they followed ancestral traditions (Frank 13). Native American artists today still strive to keep their culture intact through their artwork.
The first Franciscans arrived in the 1580s, prior to Oņate’s arrival in the Southwest. The Franciscans took on the enormous task of trying to convert the Indians to Christianity. The Franciscan friars used the Pueblo Indians’ labor to construct churches in the villages. The Pueblo Indians had no experience with shaping and carving stone, and any masonry done prior to the friars’ arrival was done by the women. The Franciscans taught the Pueblo Indians how to make adobe, a mixture of mud, sand, water, and sometimes straw. Adobe construction methods were brought to Spain from the Moors. The Spanish word adobe comes from the arabic word attoba, meaning "the brick" (Gavin 1-2). Adobe bricks were formed in molds and the mission stations began to be built. The mission stations consisted of the church and the living quarters for the missionary. The church was the most important structure, and it included the nave and the apse. The churches were very tall and approximately four times as long as wide. The churches lacked decoration, but they were massive and had a fine sculptural quality (Bunting 56). Most of the churches were destroyed during the Pueblo Revolt. Many of the missions still exist today, some were rebuilt, and the ones that survived the Revolt were restored.
The Franciscan friars not only had great power over the Indians, they also had great influence over the Hispanic traditions of that time. Hispanic arts, like Native American arts, were affected by many factors. Over the years their works of art depict changes that were caused by both exchange and intermarriage with Native Americans, by long distances from Spanish economic and artistic centers like Mexico City, and by individual needs for embellishment and innovation (Gavin 22).
Thousands of miles away from their home in Spain or Mexico, the colonists clung to
things and ways familiar to them, just as the Southwest Indians clung to their rituals and
beliefs when they were being subjugated by the Spanish. Many Spanish settlements were
established along the Rio Grande after the reconquest expedition in 1692. Churches were
rebuilt, and altar screens, reredos, and smaller individual works were being produced to
decorate the insides of the churches (Gavin 28). Most of the decorative work was imported
from Mexico, but strong local traditions were emerging among the Hispanic craftsmen. These
local craftsmen became the first santeros, creating religious images in the form of
retablos and bultos. A retablo is a two-dimensional painting on wood panel and a bulto was
a three-dimensional sculpture, usually made of cottonwood. The religious images were customarily of saints, the Holy Family and various representations of
Christ (Frank 16).
Tinwork is another Hispanic art form; it did not develop as a craft until materials became available to the settlers in the 1840s. Ornamental tinwork derives from that of Mexico, where it had developed in the early 1800s as an inexpensive substitute for silverwork. The tinsmiths in New Mexico recycled tin containers items like lard and coffee. Tinsmiths generally made elegant decorative items for household use or for use in the church. They made picture frames, sconces, chandeliers, nichos, boxes, and crosses (Coulter 4).
Tinwork, retablos, bultos, and other Hispanic art forms had nearly died out by the 1920s. There was very little demand for handmade items because they had been replaced by factory made commercial products. In the 1920s and 1930s private organizations such as the Spanish Colonial Arts Society and the Native Market, began to foster the crafts. During the Depression there was a Hispanic crafts revival. Handicraft production was seen as a viable means of economic support for isolated villagers. The New Deal Era of the 1930s and 1940s and the creation of WPA, Works Progress Administration, kept Hispanic traditions alive. The artists of this time helped breakdown stereotypes about Hispanic folk art, and their work exceeds that of "handicrafts." Hispanic crafts and culture have blossomed in the last two decades.
Most of my students have deep roots in New Mexico, but many of them seem to feel disconnected from their cultures. Art lessons will enable my students to explore their ethnic backgrounds and link their extensive histories to their present lives. An Indo/Hispano art curriculum will stress the importance of making connections. It will help students recognize the blending of cultures that occurred in New Mexico and it will help them unravel similarities and differences in the various Indo/Hispano arts of that era. The students will connect New Mexican art of the past to contemporary New Mexican art. Most importantly, the curriculum will bring the students closer to their own cultures.
Unit Overview
The goal of the unit is for the students to gain a better and fuller understanding of their culture through the arts. Each lesson of the unit is designed to give a historical background of the culture being studied as art work is being presented. The hands-on activities will echo the particular type of art being examined. The art projects will have guidelines, but they are open to the students’ individual ideas and interpretations.
The unit will be implemented in an Art 1 class at the beginning of second semester. It
is a second semester unit because the lessons are advanced. During the first semester the
Art 1 class will have learned the principles and elements of design. The students will
carry their knowledge of first semester into second semester. They will apply the concepts
and the techniques they have already learned to their second semester projects.
The Indo/Hispano art unit will meet many of New Mexico’s Content Standards and Benchmarks for Visual Art. For example, students will:
- examine how specific works are created and how they relate to historical and cultural contexts (A-5).
- use oral and written methods to express the introspective process used in creating personal artwork (A-6).
- exhibit studio work in community-based exhibits (A-11).
The unit will last the entire semester. There will be six lessons and each lesson will take approximately three weeks to complete. For each lesson, ten days will be devoted to the hands-on activities. Three days will be spent introducing the project, with the assistance of videos, slide shows, field trips and guest artists. The last two days of the lesson will be spent sharing student work and reflecting on the project through discussion and writing exercises. The class will also pair up with a local gallery and do an Indo/Hispano art exhibit that will be a collection of their best work from the unit.
Lesson 1- Bead Loom Weaving
Objective: To make two projects on the loom. One project must be balanced, symmetrical and/or repetitive. The other project can be entirely their own design. The pattern can be symmetrical or asymmetrical, but it must incorporate symbols that mean something to them personally.
Materials:
seed beads
size "D" nymo thread
bead graph paper
size "B" nymo thread
thin markers
scissors
wooden loom
findings
beading needles
Introduction: When Coronado entered the Southwest in 1540, he was pleased to discover that the Native Americans had their own weaving traditions. According to Navajo legend, Spider Woman, a mythic goddess and one of the Holy people, taught the Navajo people how to weave. Repetitive and symmetrical geometric elements appear in many of their blankets. It has been discovered that the Navajo wove in personal items, like hair, feathers, and pieces of dollar bills into their rugs. The Navajo believed the items in the rugs would protect loved ones who took a rug with them on a long journey. The secret, hidden items nestled tightly in the layers would bring them luck and insure a safe return. The feathers symbolize freedom, and represented the Navajo feelings of wanting to go back to the "old ways" after feeling oppressed by the Spanish.
Preparation: Show slides and images of Native American weaving examples. Give an historical background on the people who made the blankets. Read passages from books and articles about Spider Woman, the beliefs that surround weaving, and the various styles of weaving.
Activity:
1. Using bead graph paper and markers, layout a design pattern for each bead project. One oval on the paper equals one bead. If you are doing a repetitive design, you only have to fill in the ovals for one design.
2. Prepare the loom. String the warp, the threads that run lengthwise, using size "D" nymo thread. You will need as many rows of thread as there are beads in the width of your design, plus one. It is suggested that the threads at either side of the warp be doubled for added strength. Pull the thread taut as you work in order to keep a uniform tension. When you have finished warping the loom, tie the end of the warp thread to the nail.
3. To begin weaving, tie the weft thread, the thread that holds the beads and travels back and forth perpendicular to the warp, to an outside warp thread. Use nymo thread size "B" for the weft. Do not start beading at the base of the warp, leave enough warp to tie the ends together. Thread the beads in order according to the first row of your design as it has been planned on graph paper. Run the row of threaded beads under the warp threads and push them up so that each bead takes its place in the space between them. Holding the beads in place with your finger, run the weft thread through the same beads, this time passing the weft in the opposite direction and above the warp threads. If you run out of weft, weave the end back into the work through several beads. End the thread in the middle of a row rather than at the edge.
4. When the beading is completed, cut the warp off at the loom. Tie knots to hold the beads in place. Finish by sewing on snaps or key rings. Burn the excess threads off.
Evaluation: During the final two days of the unit, give the students an opportunity to reflect on the lesson. One day can be spent looking at student work. Place the pieces on black paper so they can focus on the work. Have each student talk about their pieces. If the symbolic project is too personal for them to talk about they don’t have too. Encourage the students to comment on one another’s work. The other day can be spent discussing the project, giving suggestions to the teacher and perhaps writing a response to a quote or a question that relates to the subject and their processes. Some possible questions could be, "If you were to weave a rug, what ‘secret’ items would you weave into it and why? Who would you give your rug to?"
Sources:
The Jeweler’s Art: A Multimedia Approach, Sprintzen
Walk in Beauty: The Navajo and Their Blankets, Berlant and Kahlenberg
Lesson Two- Overlay Pendant
* In order to complete this project you must have the proper equipment. You will need jewelry saws and acetylene tanks for soldering.
Objective: To create an overlay pendant using Native American silversmithing techniques
and design motifs. Think about how you will use the elements of positive space and
negative space in your design.
Materials:
nickel silver
flexible shaft
jewelry saws blades
solder
flux
tweezers
acetylene tanks
striker
nickel
pickle
copper tongs raw hide mallet
steel wool
buffing wheels
Introduction: Living in New Mexico, we see Southwestern jewelry everywhere! Men and women like to adorn themselves with jewelry. We often see women wearing turquoise earrings and necklaces, and silver concha belts. Men like to where bolo ties and big overlay rings. Atsidi Sani, the first Navajo ironsmith, also became the first Southwest Indian to work with silver. It is believed that he acquired his knowledge of silversmithing between 1853 ad 1858. At the end of 1869, trade and travel became possible throughout the reservations. This had great relevance to silversmithing because trade gave the Indians metal and travel brought plateros, Mexican silversmiths. Silver came to the Navajo in the form of coins and they also acquired solder. The tools and technology of the time were very crude. Today our tools are very modern compared to what the Native Americans worked with.
Preparation: Show slides and images of Southwest Indian jewelry. Take a field trip to Maisel’s, a silversmithing shop located at 510 Central Ave SW. Do a thorough demonstration on creating an overlay pendant. Show them how to drill, saw, file, sweat solder, pick solder, and buff. Go over the safety rules with the students. Stress safety issues. The students need to be very alert and careful when they are working with jewelry equipment. They need to tie their hair back and wear safety goggles when they are using the flexible shaft, soldering, and buffing. Talk about the tools and equipment they will be using, demonstrate how to use each one. Have the students take notes and quiz them about the tools and equipment. They must be able to identify them and know how they are used. Quiz them daily until they get all the answers correct. (The students that receive 100% on their quizzes after the first or second time can begin their sketches).
Activity:
1. The first step to creating any jewelry piece is to sketch out a design, a plan. You should not make your pendant designs too small because you will be sawing out pieces of metal. You need to have a minimum of three cut-outs. Make sure the teacher sees your design before you transfer it to the metal. Often times the teacher can give you helpful suggestions.
2. When you are satisfied with your design you can transfer it to a piece of nickel. You can either cut out your sketch and glue it to the nickel or you can put masking tape on top of the nickel and redraw your design.
3. Using the flexible shaft, drill holes in the shapes you want to cut out. Drill a hole at the top of your pendant that is big enough for an 18 gauge wire ring to fit through.
4. Make interior and exterior cuts with the saw. File the interior spaces.
5. Sweat solder the back of the piece. Brush on the flux and place lots of medium solder it. The pieces of solder need to be small. Heat the underside of the metal first, when the flux goes clear, put the flame on top. Heat the metal until the solder flows.
6. Place your piece in the pickle. When you take it out of the pickle (with copper tongs only!!!!), rinse it with water.
7. Solder the piece with the cut outs to a sheet of nickel that is slightly bigger. The two pieces must be touching in order for the solder to flow. If they don’t touch, hammer them flat with a raw hide mallet. Again, heat the bottom first, when it is hot enough, move the flame back and forth over the top until the solder flows. It may take more than one try.
8. Place your piece in the pickle and rinse with water.
9. When you have thoroughly soldered the top piece to the bottom piece, saw off the excess metal. Then file the outside of the pendant so that both pieces are flush.
10. Make a small ring with 18 gauge wire and put it through the hole at the top of the pendant. Pick solder the ring closed with easy solder. Place the piece in the pickle and rinse it with water.
11. Sand scratches off the surface using steel wool.
12. Buff the pendant on the buffing wheel to give it a shiny finish. You can give it a matte finish using the steel wool.
13. Place your pendant on a chain or leather cord and wear it!
Evaluation: During the final two days of the unit, give the students an opportunity to reflect on the lesson. One day can be spent looking at student work. Place the pieces on black paper so they can focus on the work. Have each student talk about their pieces. Encourage the students to comment on one another’s work. The other day can be spent discussing the project, giving suggestions to the teacher and perhaps writing a response to a quote or a question that relates to the subject and their processes. A possible question could be, "What do you think it would be like to make jewelry in the 1800s?"
Sources:
Indian Jewelry Making: Volume I & II, Branson
The Complete Metal Smith, McCreight
Lesson 3: Coil Pot
Objective: To make a pot out of clay using the coiling method that the Pueblo Indians have been using for centuries.
Materials: low
fire clay variety of clay tools
cardboard kiln
glaze
under glaze
brushes
sponges
Introduction: Pueblo pottery is made from clay dug from deposits near the Pueblos. The clay is tempered with finely powdered material, like sand, so that it doesn't crack when the piece is being formed. The Pueblo Indians did not have potter’s wheels. When potter’s wheels were accessible to the Native Americans, they refused to use them. All of their pottery was hand built. The hand building method they used is called coiling. They used many methods for finishing and decorating their pieces. There are numerous ways of adding design elements to pottery. Usually the coils were smoothed and designs were either scratched into it, or pigments were added after the piece was fired. Some of the pieces have a glaze finish and some have a matte finish. The motifs most often found on pottery were feathers, volutes, star patterns, flowers, circles, clouds, suns, and animal figures. The images reveal how centered the Pueblos were in their own mythology and how tenaciously they followed ancestral traditions.
Preparation: Show a video on Maria Martinez, the famous potter from San Ildefonso Pueblo. Read portions of the article by Rina Swentzell. Bring coil pot examples into the classroom. Give a demonstration on making a coil pot. Show the students how to wedge the clay. Demonstrate how to score the pieces that are being connected, to add slip, and to reinforce the joint.
Activity:
1. Prior to starting the coil pots, get used to the feel of the clay and make a small pinch pot. Make sure you wedge the clay first.
2. Before you begin your coil pot, think about its shape. Is it going to be round with a big opening, or tall and thin with a small opening? The shape can be simple or complex. Your pots should be between 8 inches and 12 inches tall.
3. The first thing you make is the base of the pot. Cut out the shape of the base from a clay slab. Make sure the base is thick enough to support the coils.
4. Begin rolling out long lengths of even thickness coils. You don’t want them too thin or too thick. As you layer coils on top of one another, remember to score, add slip and reinforce. When working with coil, allow the lower part to begin to partially dry as you move up the piece, but do it carefully to avoid cracks as it dries. Allowing the pot to dry partially makes it possible to place more weight on the base of the work, and therefore the work can be tall without collapsing. (Coil pots will take a week or two to build. Make sure you wrap your piece in wet paper towel and put it in a plastic bag so it does not dry out too much).
5. When you are finished building the pot, you need to decide if you want to smooth out the coils or leave them exposed. You also need to decide if you want scratch into it and create designs and texture.
6. Leave the pot uncovered until it is completely dry, then fire it in a kiln.
7. After it is fired you may create designs with under glazes and put a clear glaze over it, or you can glaze it one color. Then fire it again.
Evaluation: During the final two days of the unit, give the students an
opportunity to reflect on the lesson. One day can be spent looking at student work. Place
the pieces on black paper so they can focus on the work. Have each student talk about
their pieces. Encourage the students to comment on one another’s work. The other day
can be spent discussing the project, giving suggestions to the teacher and perhaps writing
a response to a quote or a question that relates to the subject and their processes. A
possible question could be, "Why do you think the Pueblo potters refused to use the
potter’s wheel?"
Sources:
I Am Here, Ware et al
Sculpture, Williams
Lesson 4: Linoleum Block Printing
Objective: To create a linoleum block print of an adobe structure or church. Think about how you will use the elements of positive space and negative space in your design.
Materials:
4 X 6 linoleum blocks black sharpies
carving tools
bench hooks
water-based ink brayers
paper
plexiglass palettes
Introduction: Adobe construction methods were brought to Spain from the Moors, and the Spanish brought adobe construction methods to New Mexico. The Spanish word adobe comes from the arabic word attoba, meaning "the brick." When the Franciscans arrived in New Mexico they taught the Pueblo Indians how to make adobe bricks, and churches were constructed throughout the Pueblo settlements. The churches lacked decoration, but they were massive and had a fine sculptural quality. Most of the churches were destroyed during the Pueblo Revolt. Many of the missions still exist today, some were rebuilt and the ones that survived the Revolt were restored.
Preparation: Discuss the presence of adobe architecture in New Mexico. Show slides and images of adobe churches and structures. Talk about how Southwest architecture influenced artists of the 20th century, like Georgia O’keeffe. Show examples of paintings, photographs, and prints of adobe architecture. Do a thorough demonstration on linoleum block printing.
Activity:
1. Create your design on paper first. You can copy an actual structure or create an image of your own. As you create your design, pay close attention to positive and negative shapes and texture. The unique thing about printmaking is that the image can be repeated. Make sure you are happy with your design, because you are going to be printing it over and over again.
2. When you are satisfied with your drawing, you can transfer it to your linoleum block. You can copy the image by hand or with carbon paper. Remember that when you print the image, it is going to be reversed. Go over your drawing on the linoleum block with a black sharpie. The black areas are the areas that will not be carved away.
3. Using a carving tool, you are going to carve away negative space by taking away the gray areas. Always carve away from your body and hands. Keep turning your block in order to get the easiest angle for cuts.
4. When you are finished carving, you are ready to print. Do a few practice prints on newsprint with black ink. After making any necessary changes, you are ready to print your first edition.
5. Print on a variety of backgrounds: colored paper, tissue paper, rice paper, etc...
Use a variety of colors, do some rainbow runs, add water color, etc... In printmaking
their are endless possibilities, so do lots of experimenting.
6. Turn in a final portfolio of your best work. The portfolio must include:
- 2 black ink on white paper
- 2 black ink on colored paper
- 2 rainbow runs
- 2 repeat patterns
- 2 experimental prints
7. Matte your favorite print.
Evaluation: During the final two days of the unit, give the students an opportunity to reflect on the lesson. One day can be spent looking at student work. Have each student talk about their pieces. Encourage the students to comment on one another’s work. The other day can be spent discussing the project, giving suggestions to the teacher and perhaps writing a response to a quote or a question that relates to the subject and their processes. Some possible questions could be, "If you could build anything out of adobe, what would it be and why would you build it?" or "How do you think the Pueblo Indians felt when they began living among huge adobe structures?"
Sources:
Early Architecture of New Mexico, Bunting
Lesson 5: Retablos
Objective: To create a retablo, a painting on wooden panel, that follows the traditions of New Mexican santeros and santeras.
Materials: wood
panel gesso
acrylic paint brushes
Introduction: Thousands of miles away from their home in Spain or Mexico, the colonists clung to things and ways familiar to them, just as the Southwest Indians clung to their rituals and beliefs when they were being subjugated by the Spanish. Many Spanish settlements were established along the Rio Grande after the reconquest expedition in 1692. Churches were rebuilt, and altar screens, reredos, and smaller individual works were being produced to decorate the insides of the churches. Most of the decorative work was imported from Mexico, but strong local traditions were emerging among the Hispanic craftsmen. These local craftsmen became the first santeros, creating religious images in the form of retablos and bultos. A retablo is a two-dimensional painting on wood panel and a bulto was a three-dimensional sculpture, usually made of cottonwood. The religious images were customarily of saints, the Holy Family and various representations of Christ. Today santeros and santeras continue to thrive. They follow the traditions of the first santeros, but they also have included their own ideas and their own images into their art work. For the most part santeros and santeras continue to make religious pieces, but they are no longer restricted to making items that represent Christian iconography. They now create secular images as well.
Preparation: Take your students on a field trip to the Museum of International Folk Art
to prepare them for the next two lessons, retablos and tinwork. Focus on the Hispanic
Heritage Wing at the museum, but also let them roam through other wings at the museum,
especially the Girard Wing! Invite a guest artist to visit the classroom to discuss what
it is like to be a santero/santera and why they became a santero/santera. Ask them to
bring examples of their work and do a demonstration on the process of making a retablo.
Possible guest artists could be Krissa Maria Lopez and Felipe Antonio Lucero.
Activity:
1. Paint your wood panel with two coats of gesso and let it dry.
2. Choose a person or animal you want to represent for your retablo. You are not limited to saints, you can depict a loved one, someone you admire, an action figure, a heroine from a novel, your pet, etc... Choose an image that means something to you personally.
3. When you have chosen your image, do a sketch of it on paper. Remember to think about balance and symmetry. Include borders and any other objects that you want to include in your image. Your designs can be traditional or contemporary.
4. Draw your design lightly, in pencil, on the gessoed panel.
5. Paint it with acrylic paint (most santeros and santeras use natural pigments to paint their pieces). Take your time.
Evaluation: During the final two days of the unit, give the students an opportunity to reflect on the lesson. One day can be spent looking at student work. Have students talk about their pieces. Encourage the students to comment on one another’s work. The other day can be spent discussing the project, giving suggestions to the teacher and perhaps writing a response to a quote or a question that relates to the subject and their processes. A possible writing topic could be, "Tell a story about the image you created, it can be a true story or you can make up a myth."
Sources:
Santos of Spanish New Mexico: A Coloring Book, Chapman
Traditional Arts of Spanish New Mexico, Gavin
Lesson 6: Tinwork
Objective: To make two projects out of tin. One project will emulate traditional Hispanic tinwork and the other project will be more contemporary and it will be made from recycled materials.
Materials:
tin sheets
tin snips
hammers
nails
glass stones
epoxy
found items
recycled materials
Introduction: Ornamental tinwork derives from that of Mexico, where it had developed in the early 1800s as an inexpensive substitute for silverwork. The tinsmiths in New Mexico recycled tin containers from items like lard and coffee. Tinsmiths generally made elegant decorative items for household use or for use in the church. They made picture frames, sconces, chandeliers, nichos, boxes and crosses. Today artists continue to make artistic objects out of tin. Many artists are devoted to the traditional ways of making tinwork, while others use innovative styles and a variety of recycled materials to create contemporary works out of tin.
Preparation: Show examples of traditional tinwork and contemporary tinwork. Two local,
traditional tinwork artists are Michael E. Griego and Patricio Baca. Two local,
contemporary tinwork artists are Cynthia Cook and Kevin Burgis. Give a demonstration on
how to add texture to tin using a hammer and a nail.
Activity:
1. Make a drawing of a traditional tin frame for a picture or a mirror. Make accurate measurements.
2. Transfer the measurements to a tin sheet and draw the appropriate lines with a sharpie.
3. Cut out the shape of the frame and add the texture you desire. Create patterns with the texture. Pay close attention to symmetry and balance.
4. Throughout the traditional tin project, bring in recycled items, "trash", from home: cans, bottle caps, jar lids, etc.
5. When you have completed the first tin project, you can begin to make your recycled tin project. This project doesn’t have very many guidelines. You have to make something three-dimensional out of the objects and containers you have collected. You can glue on glass stones, marbles, plastic toys, etc. Be creative and inventive! Have fun with the project and push yourselves beyond what you think you can accomplish.
Evaluation: During the final two days of the unit, give the students an opportunity to reflect on the lesson. One day can be spent looking at student work. Place the pieces on black paper so they can focus on the work. Have each student talk about their pieces. Encourage the students to comment on one another’s work. The other day can be spent discussing the project, giving suggestions to the teacher and perhaps writing a response to a quote or a question that relates to the subject and their processes. Some possible questions could be, "What kind of tinwork did you prefer to make, the traditional or the contemporary? Why did you prefer that method?"
Sources:
New Mexican Tinwork: 1840-1940, Coulter and Dixon
Traditional Arts of Spanish New Mexico, Gavin
Conclusion
End the unit with an art show at a local gallery that celebrates the students and their
work. Have the students come up with a title for the show and a brief description of what
the show is about. Allow the students to choose one of their own favorite pieces to
display. Also ask them to write an artist statement that includes their name, the title of
the piece and the art category their piece would fall under. Then ask them to write what
culture(s) influenced their art work and how they felt connected to that culture(s) as
they were working on their piece. Have a big opening for the students. Invite their
friends and family, the school staff, and patrons of the arts. Give the students the
choice of selling their work or not. Have a few of the students address the crowd and talk
about the unit, what they learned and how they grew from the experience.
Annotated Teacher Bibliography
Amsden, Charles Avery. Navaho Weaving. Salt Lake City and Santa Barbara:
Pelegrine Smith, Inc., 1975.
This book is concerned solely with the weaving done
by the Navajo. Navajo weaving is not a phenomenon of spontaneous outburst, it is a link in
a long chain.