Native American Pottery

Signed LRG Louise Goodman Navajo Nation Brown Bear Sculpture Native American

Signed LRG Louise Goodman Navajo Nation Brown Bear Sculpture Native American
Signed LRG Louise Goodman Navajo Nation Brown Bear Sculpture Native American
Signed LRG Louise Goodman Navajo Nation Brown Bear Sculpture Native American
Signed LRG Louise Goodman Navajo Nation Brown Bear Sculpture Native American
Signed LRG Louise Goodman Navajo Nation Brown Bear Sculpture Native American
Signed LRG Louise Goodman Navajo Nation Brown Bear Sculpture Native American
Signed LRG Louise Goodman Navajo Nation Brown Bear Sculpture Native American
Signed LRG Louise Goodman Navajo Nation Brown Bear Sculpture Native American
Signed LRG Louise Goodman Navajo Nation Brown Bear Sculpture Native American

Signed LRG Louise Goodman Navajo Nation Brown Bear Sculpture Native American

Signed LRG Louise Goodman - Navajo Nation Ceramic Brown Bear Sculpture. 9x 5 2lbs 15 oz Condition is Used. Rough texture with varying shades of brown glaze.

Some glaze missing as seen in pics. There are some imperfections that were there when I found it (as seen in the pictures). Its beautiful but time for him to find a new home. Approx 9 high, 5 wide.

A contemporary exponent of a longstanding Navajo pottery tradition, Goodman has produced simple vessels and utilitarian objects. When the demand for functional works decreased in the 1980s she turned to animal figures. Her stylized bears are notable for their small heads and legs and substantial torsos, as well as surface textures that mimic a bear's thick fur.

Goodman's choice of the bear reflects the important role this animal has played in the lives of the Navajo and other Native American communities. A key source of food and of materials for clothing, shelter, and ceremonial objects, they are also important as emblems of power and plenitude. Lynda Hartigan Contemporary Folk Art: Treasures from the Smithsonian American Art Museum (exhibition text, Smithsonian American Art Museum, 1999). Louise Goodman was born into the Deer Spring Clan on the Navajo Nation in 1937.

Her sister-in-law, Lorena Bartlett, taught her how to make pottery. Early in her career as a potter she made standard bowls and jars in a wide variety of shapes and sizes. In the 1970s, she moved more into producing animal figures - Chickens, dogs, rams, squirrels, lions, bears, elephants and more. In the 1980s Louise began making large, pot-bellied bears with stubby legs and small heads, sitting on their haunches. Those are much sought after by collectors.

Louise work in a closet sized studio in her home in Cow Springs, Arizona for many years. Her studio was especially crowded in those years when her children were working with her. Her pottery was coiled and shaped by hand using clay she minded on the Navajo Nation. She ground-fired with wood and completed her pieces with a veneer of melted pinon pine pitch.

Her "rope pots" were a true innovation constructed of coils smoothed only on the inside, left rough on the exterior and accented with random fire clouds. They can be found in many museums including the Heard Museum of Phoenix, the Museum of Northern Arizona in Flagstaff, the Smithsonian Museum of the American Indian in Washington, DC and the Navajo Tribal Museum of Window Rock.

Louise died on April 4, 2015. Items may show blemishes not typically seen with the naked eye. The item "Signed LRG Louise Goodman Navajo Nation Brown Bear Sculpture Native American" is in sale since Monday, July 22, 2019. This item is in the category "Collectibles\Cultures & Ethnicities\Native American\ US\1935-Now\Pottery". The seller is "mardown65" and is located in Glen Ellyn, Illinois. This item can be shipped to United States.
  • Tribal Affiliation: Navajo
  • Artisan: Louise Goodman
  • Handmade: Yes

Signed LRG Louise Goodman Navajo Nation Brown Bear Sculpture Native American