Hopi Tewa Wedding Jar By Kathleen Collateta

Late 20th/Early 21st Century

12.875" H x 6" D

From a Private Colorado Collection

Excellent Condition

Redware with Hand Painted Black, Red, Yellow and White Colors. Has Sun, Native Figure with Headdress and Geometric Designs and a Handle for Carrying 

Kathleen Collateta (born 1969) is a contemporary potter from the Sun Clan at Jemez Pueblo in New Mexico, but her work is deeply rooted in Hopi-Tewa traditions. Her father, Tom Collateta Sr., is Hopi-Tewa from First Mesa in Arizona and a renowned Kachina carver. Her mother, Antonita Collateta, is from Jemez Pueblo and is known for traditional embroidery on dance costumes. Kathleen is also the granddaughter-in-law of Sara Collateta, another notable potter.
Active since 1975, Collateta specializes in hand-coiled pottery using traditional techniques. Her pieces often feature polychrome (multiple natural colors) designs inspired by Hopi motifs, including birds, rain, clouds, Mudheads (Kachina figures), feathers, parrots, Polik Mana (Butterfly Maiden), and Dawa-Sun Kachina. She works with combinations like black and red on yellow for seed jars and vases, or black and red on white for jars, bowls, and wedding vases. Her pottery is pit-fired, a traditional method that produces earthy tones and subtle variations.
Collateta's work exemplifies the fusion of Hopi (from Arizona's Hopi Reservation) and Tewa (from New Mexico Pueblos like San Ildefonso or Jemez) styles, reflecting the historical migration of Tewa people to Hopi lands in the late 17th century.
The "Hopi Pueblo Tewa Wedding Jar" refers to a traditional Native American ceramic vessel, specifically a wedding vase (often interchangeably called a wedding jar in some contexts), created by the Hopi-Tewa potter Kathleen Collateta (who signs her work as K. Collateta). This type of pottery is a hallmark of Southwestern Indigenous art, blending Hopi and Tewa cultural influences.