Tammy Garcia:
A Celebration of a Storied
Santa Clara Pueblo Artist Lineage

Chimayo Trading Staff Report | October 2025

Tammy Garcia is a renowned American sculptor, ceramic artist, and potter from Santa Clara Pueblo (Kha P’o, or “Place of the White Cliffs”) in northern New Mexico. She is widely regarded as one of the most innovative contemporary Native American artists, blending the deep-rooted traditions of Pueblo pottery with modern, avant-garde elements. Her work has earned her international acclaim, including solo exhibitions at major institutions, and her pieces are held in prestigious collections such as the Heard Museum, the Autry Museum of the American West and the Denver Art Museum. She has won multiple awards for her pottery and most recently was the subject of a one-woman exhibit at the National Museum of Women in the Arts garnering her awards and accolades that include the 2008 Governors Award for Excellence in the Arts in New Mexico.

A very special piece of Tammy Garcia’s pottery just arrived at Chimayo Trading Del Norte. This black bowl was the model she created for the base of all of her large-scale pottery when learning how to coil a base of this size and how to polish the area of a pot of this scale, her first large-scale pottery project. Visit our gallery in Ranchos de Taos, NM to see it in person, or online at chimayotrading.com.

28″ x 8″ x 13″
$4500

Garcia was born into one of the most storied lineages of Santa Clara potters, a family tree that spans generations of women who have shaped Pueblo ceramics.

Great-great-great-grandmother: Sara Fina Tafoya (1863–1949), a pioneering potter known for her innovative impressed designs in redware and blackware.

Great-great-grandmother: Christina Naranjo.

Great-great-aunt: Margaret Tafoya (1904–2001) Shop Margaret Tafoya >>, the “matriarch of Santa Clara Pueblo potters” (as dubbed by The New York Times), famous for her massive, highly polished blackware vessels that influenced modern Pueblo art.

Grandmother: Mary Cain Shop Mary Cain >>

Great-aunt, Mary Cain’s Sister: Teresita Naranjo Shop Teresita Naranjo >>

Mother: Linda Cain Shop Linda Cain >>, who taught Garcia the fundamentals of pottery-making, from coiling clay to firing in outdoor pits.

Sister: Autumn Borts-Medlock, also a celebrated potter.

Born in Los Angeles but raised on the pueblo, Garcia grew up immersed in this matrilineal tradition. As a teenager, she was already active in the marketplace selling her early pieces. By her late 20s, she was recognized as a leading young innovator, pushing beyond ancestral forms while honoring them. She describes her childhood firings as communal family events, where “it took a family to do the work,” fostering a sense of cultural continuity.

A prominent artist known for her exceptional pottery, Garcia blends traditional Pueblo techniques with contemporary designs. Her pottery adheres to traditional Santa Clara methods: hand-coiling native clays sourced from the pueblo, burnishing for a glossy finish, and firing in open pits to achieve the signature blackware or redware hues.

Garcia is particularly celebrated for her large-scale pottery pieces that are particularly notable for their intricate craftsmanship and unique storytelling elements. Her large-scale pottery is a direct homage to her great-aunt Margaret Tafoya’s monumental vessels, which could exceed 18 inches in height and were designed for both utility and ceremony. Garcia’s oversized jars and bowls, often 12–20 inches tall, feature the same polished black or red finishes but are transformed by her expansive carvings, turning them into narrative canvases. These “large pots virtually blanketed with deeply carved figures” (e.g., swarms of insects or serpentine avanyu water guardians) showcase her skill in scaling up traditional techniques without losing detail.

“Tammy Garcia – Form Without Boundaries”

This book is a collection of images portraying Tammy’s extraordinary talent. She is regarded as one of the foremost Native American potters in the world today and this book provides glimpses of her sculpture and jewelry. Today, collectors buy her work by lottery as her pieces have become so sought after and her production for the public market is limited.

These large pieces symbolize abundance and endurance in Pueblo culture, much like Tafoya’s storage jars, but Garcia infuses them with personal stories—reflecting her “one-on-one education” from family elders. They often sell out at markets and are harder to find than her smaller works, underscoring their status as masterpieces.

“Cross Current”
Limited Edition Bronze Sculpture 15/30 2005, Wood Base
28″ x 8″ x 13″
$15,000

“Butterfly Maidens”
Bronze Sculpture 4/15
47″ x 7″ x 7”
Rotating Wood Base: 20″ x 14″ x 14″
$25,000

Garcia’s boldly creative innovations have revivified the ancient art, garnering her many awards and accolades. She now lives in Taos, New Mexico, where she continues to create across multiple media, but her foundation remains in the clay traditions of her heritage.

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Come to the gallery to see where History Meets Art in Taos..

#1 Saint Francis Church Plaza
Ranchos de Taos, NM 87557

575.758.0504

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