Two American Modernists: Nampeyo and Fannie, the Mother-Daughter Connection

Two American Modernists: Nampeyo and Fannie, the Mother-Daughter Connection

Please join us Friday, August 11th, from 4pm to 7pm at Steve Elmore Indian Art in Santa Fe for the opening of the new show “Two American Modernists: Nampeyo and Fannie, the Mother-Daughter Connection.” The show explores the connection between this mother-and-daughter pottery team through exceptional examples of art by the Hopi-Tewa master potter Nampeyo (1856-1942) and her daughter, Fannie Nampeyo (1900-1987), her most prolific potting daughter. Fannie’s granddaughter, master potter Vernida Polacca Nampeyo, will present her new work alongside her grandmothers’ at the show’s opening reception.

Nampeyo was the first American artist to create her own original, abstract designs. Her youngest daughter Fannie continued her legacy by also creating her own innovative designs. As her mother taught her, Fannie taught her children and grandchildren how to make traditional pottery, and how to paint the Sikyatki Revival family designs they created together. The two often collaborated on pieces up until Nampeyo’s passing in 1942. After Nampeyo lost her vision around 1920, Nampeyo molded and Fannie painted. “Two American Modernists” incorporates superb pieces by both potters, created individually and collaboratively, that demonstrate their enduring legacy and influence on the art world. Their pottery is a testament to their connection as a mother and a daughter, and also to their relationship as master artist-potters.