Hopi Polacca Small Bowl with Fantastic Designs

Hopi

Clay | Item 2517

The designs on this Hopi Polacca bowl are so satisfying to me, a perfect balance of shapes alongside voids. The roots of these shapes are the standard fare – feathers, steps, etc. It is in their gesturing, their looseness and curvilinear movement that makes the whole ensemble dance. The subtle use of color with the two areas of red against the deep brown designs, gives the whole system more life. The resolution of these dancing patterns into a simple square at the bottom gives it all the perfect grounding point. The rim is a deep red and not deep brown used in the designs, which leads me to believe that this is an early example, perhaps dating to the mid 19th century or earlier. The burnt area on the exterior bottom suggests that this was used over the fire, as this appears more recent than a fire cloud formed during the firing process.