Tony Dallas Koshare/Mudhead Friendship Drum Hopi Pottery
This is an authentically hand coiled and hand painted bowl by Tony Dallas a master potter of storytellers from the Hopi tribe. Tony Dallas is a full-blooded Native American Indian, born in 1956 into the Hopi Reservation. He married into the Cochiti Pueblo in the early 1980's. From an early age, he was inspired to learn the art of working with clay sculptures by observing his mother-in-law, Lucy R. Suina.
Tony seriously began making pottery in 1982, learning all the ancient traditional methods of constructing pottery and clay sculptures. His love, however, turned out to be storytellers that he endowed with his own creative genius. He stated, "I started to hand coil a regular storyteller. Then, I thought for a moment. Mudheads and Koshare clowns also tell stories and they are so humorous to me. So I began experimenting with different styles of storytellers using my creative imagination to construct them". Tony's style is a finely painted contemporary flare on a traditional sculpture.
He signs his art as: T.D. followed by a badger claw to denote his Clan origin.
Tony is related to the late Charles Loma.
The present friendship drum shows three Koshare and three Mudhead children around the rim of the drum in an indication of unity and friendship. The colors are bold and also precisely painted. The pot measures 6.5 inches tall by 5 inches wide and is signed by Tony
Item No.: A1427
Artist: Tony Dalas
Size: 6.5 in H x 5 in D
Price: 550
