Opening: Of Earth and Air

Chris Youngblood and Jennifer Tafoya are partners in life and in art. Both are from the Santa Clara Pueblo in Northern New Mexico, and both have won awards at the prestigious Santa Fe Indian Market. But now, for their two-person show at the King Galleries in Old Town Scottsdale titled Of Earth and Air, the two have created some of their own work and have collaborated on a few pieces as well.

Opening: Saturday, February 22, 1:00–3:00 pm

“The collaborative pieces are a mix between some of my style and some of Jennifers,” says Chris, who learned to make pottery from his mother Nancy Youngblood. His grandmother is legendary Santa Clara potter Magaret Tafoya. “Typically, I make the piece, and then we design it together, carve it sand it, polish it and then Jen takes over and does etching and colors.”

Tafoya won Best of Show at the Santa Fe Indian Market in 2023 for a piece that showcased her famous sgraffito style with dinosaurs as the subject matter. One of her pieces in this year’s show includes dinosaurs, while others focus on Arizona animals and parrots.

“Jennifer Tafoya (Santa Clara) and Christopher Youngblood (Santa Clara) are among the young stars in Pueblo clay art, “says gallery owner Charles King.