Symbols of Clans
Artist/Culture
Awa Tsireh
(Native American, 1898–1955)
Date1925-1930
Mediumwatercolor and ink over graphite on medium thick, textured, beige laid paper
Dimensions45.6 x 60.2 cm (17 15/16 x 23 11/16 in.)
ClassificationsWatercolors
MarkingsWatermark: MICHALLET/FRANCE
Credit LineMuseum Purchase
Object number1935.105
Label TextAlso known by his Spanish name Alfonso Roybal, Tsireh was among the first San Ildefonso Pueblo artists to receive national critical acclaim. His earlier years decorating pottery clearly informed his later painting style. Characterized by their interplay between static and dynamic geometric forms and an open, flat background, Tsireh’s watercolors drew upon established Pueblo iconography. However, he and others in the San Ildefonso artist collective also invented new motifs shaped by the intersection of Native American and Anglo- American cultural, as well as economic and political, forces.ProvenanceMiss Emily M. Hayes, Worcester, MAOn View
Not on view
