Making Babies for Indian Market
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Object Label
Roxanne Swentzell’s work often plays on the interaction between native and non-native worlds. Here she uses clay, an ancient artistic medium, to depict a traditional Pueblo woman, whose face is much like Swentzell’s own. The woman in the sculpture looks up at the Santa Clara black pot balanced on her head, from which babies are emerging. But there is a contemporary ironic twist to what the woman is doing: is she “birthing” pots to be sold at an Indian market, or is it the baby Indians themselves that the consumer will want to buy? The work challenges the viewer to acknowledge the treatment of Native Americans as a stereotype and commodity in representations by non-natives in popular culture and advertising.
Caption
Roxanne Swentzell Kah'p'oo Owinge (Santa Clara Pueblo), born 1962; Santa Clara. Making Babies for Indian Market, 2004. Clay, pigment, 23 1/2 x 8 1/2 x 17 in. (59.7 x 21.6 x 43.2 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift in memory of Helen Thomas Kennedy, 2004.80. © artist or artist's estate (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 2004.80_SL3.jpg)
Gallery
Not on view
Collection
Gallery
Not on view
Collection
Artist
Culture
Title
Making Babies for Indian Market
Date
2004
Geography
Place made: Santa Clara, New Mexico, United States
Medium
Clay, pigment
Classification
Dimensions
23 1/2 x 8 1/2 x 17 in. (59.7 x 21.6 x 43.2 cm)
Credit Line
Gift in memory of Helen Thomas Kennedy
Accession Number
2004.80
Rights
© artist or artist's estate
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Frequent Art Questions
This is so interesting! Can you tell me about this?
"Making Babies for Indian Market" is by Roxanne Swentzell. In the work, she is referencing the Santa Fe Indian Market, which occurs on one weekend a year in Santa Fe. It began in 1922.Pottery as a Native art form is practiced by women in the Southwest and Swentzell comes from a family of acclaimed potters. Roxanne Swentzell has said about this work: "Making Babies for Indian Market is about the creative process. My pieces are like children that are born through me. Its about all the 'babies of artwork' born because of Indian Market."I love this piece!
It's an effort our curatorial team has made to show that Native art and culture remains present, despite the attempts in the past to place them in an archaeological context.That's exactly why I love it.What is the artist trying to convey?
This work by Roxanne Swentzell and can be seen as a commentary on both the role of the artist as a creator and the commercial aspect of the art world. Swentzell is referencing the Santa Fe Indian Market, which is a major venue for Native artists to sell their work. The woman is making/giving birth to the next generation of artists who will sell their work at Santa Fe Indian Market.What about this? Were they into giants or something?
Interesting thought, this is actually the work of a contemporary Santa Clara Pueblo artist, Roxanne Swentzell. This sculpture is called "Making Babies for Indian Market" and is based on the historical form of Storyteller figures which are women surrounded by children.Oh wow.The Indian Market is an annual art market held in downtown Santa Fe for one weekend every August. In addition, hundreds of gallery openings, art shows and related events take place during the weekend of Indian Market and during the two weeks immediately preceding it. Indian art collectors and artists from around the world make the pilgrimage to Santa Fe.The smaller people on top look afraid.
Fear could definitely be at least one of the emotions involved in the work. This is a work by contemporary artist Roxanne Swentzell which comments on the sale of Native American culture. The babies, in this case, could be interpreted as a commodity to be sold.Ok, thanks.
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