Lizard Pot

Christine McHorse, Lizard Pot, ca. 1990, pit-fired micaceous clay with piñon pitch, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Chuck and Jan Rosenak and museum purchase made possible by Ralph Cross Johnson, 1997.124.160
Christine McHorse, Lizard Pot, ca. 1990, pit-fired micaceous clay with piñon pitch, 5 3413 7811 78 in. (14.635.230.2 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Chuck and Jan Rosenak and museum purchase made possible by Ralph Cross Johnson, 1997.124.160

Artwork Details

Title
Lizard Pot
Date
ca. 1990
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
5 3413 7811 78 in. (14.635.230.2 cm)
Credit Line
Gift of Chuck and Jan Rosenak and museum purchase made possible by Ralph Cross Johnson
Mediums
Mediums Description
pit-fired micaceous clay with piñon pitch
Classifications
Subjects
  • Animal — reptile — lizard
Object Number
1997.124.160

Artwork Description

Christine McHorse uses both traditional and contemporary processes for her clay creations. She fired this pot in the old Navajo manner—in an outdoor pit using cottonwood bark for fuel—and coated it with piñon pitch. For other work, she uses an electric kiln because it allows better control and thinner clay walls.

"I feel as Navajo as anyone else—I can make my own taboos and traditions."
—Christine McHorse

Exhibition Label, Smithsonian American Art Museum, 2006

Works by this artist (3 items)

Christine McHorse, Wolves Courting at Full Moon, 1988, fired micaceous clay with piñon pitch, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Chuck and Jan Rosenak and museum purchase made possible by Ralph Cross Johnson, 1997.124.161
Wolves Courting at Full Moon
Date1988
fired micaceous clay with piñon pitch
On view
Christine McHorse, Crow Pot, 1991, kiln-fired and pit-fired micaceous clay with pinon pitch, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Chuck and Jan Rosenak and museum purchase made possible by Mrs. Gibson Fahnestock, 1997.124.159
Crow Pot
Date1991
kiln-fired and pit-fired micaceous clay with pinon pitch
On view
Christine McHorse, Lizard Pot, ca. 1990, pit-fired micaceous clay with piñon pitch, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Chuck and Jan Rosenak and museum purchase made possible by Ralph Cross Johnson, 1997.124.160
Lizard Pot
Dateca. 1990
pit-fired micaceous clay with piñon pitch
Not on view

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