Dorothy Trujillo was from Jemez Pueblo, but achieved fame as a figurative potter once she moved to Cochiti where her husband was from. She did large pieces (this one is 8″ tall and 5 1/2″ deep) often with wonderful detail. This one, dating to perhaps 1980 has 10 animated and sleepy babies. The mother’s dress is decorated with pottery designs on the front, side and particularly the back. She wears a traditional necklace which is carved in raised relief. The mother’s closed eyes, the T on the top of the head, and the sculpted nose are distinctive to Dorothy. This is a wonderful example of her now surprisingly hard to find work and is similar in many ways to the one illustrated in a color plate on page 105 of Babcock’s important book: The Pueblo Storyteller.
Condition is mostly excellent and unrestored with a couple of minor rubs on the top of several of the babies’ heads.
Provenance: The Collection of Rutt Bridges