Tewa Tales of Suspense
Jason Garcia (Okuu Pin), American, Tewa, New Mexico, Santa Clara Pueblo, born 1973
2021
fired clay and native clay pigments, 9 × 8 in.
Jason Garcia is a member of the Santa Clara Pueblo tribe. He also goes by the name Okuu Pin, which means "turtle mountain" in the Tewa language. Garcia grew up in an artistic family known for their pottery. He is also influences by comic book imagery and uses traditional Pueblo pottery techniques to create images drawn from popular culture. A constant observer of the world around him, Garcia's work documents changes in his community and connects the past to the present and future generations by incorporating images of modern technology, such as televisions and cell phones, into his work.
Presented in bright colors and comic book format, Garcia's Tewa Tales of Suspense! series consists of seven works that depict the Pueblo Revolt of 1680, in which Indigenous Pueblo people fought against Spanish colonization in modern-day New Mexico in a battle that killed 400 Spaniards and drove the remaining settlers out of the region. It is the only successful Native uprising against a colonizing power in North America.
(Birmingham Museum of Art)
Tewa Tales of Suspense
Jason Garcia (Okuu Pin), American, Tewa, New Mexico, Santa Clara Pueblo, born 1973
2021
fired clay and native clay pigments, 9 × 8 in.
Jason Garcia is a member of the Santa Clara Pueblo tribe. He also goes by the name Okuu Pin, which means "turtle mountain" in the Tewa language. Garcia grew up in an artistic family known for their pottery. He is also influences by comic book imagery and uses traditional Pueblo pottery techniques to create images drawn from popular culture. A constant observer of the world around him, Garcia's work documents changes in his community and connects the past to the present and future generations by incorporating images of modern technology, such as televisions and cell phones, into his work.
Presented in bright colors and comic book format, Garcia's Tewa Tales of Suspense! series consists of seven works that depict the Pueblo Revolt of 1680, in which Indigenous Pueblo people fought against Spanish colonization in modern-day New Mexico in a battle that killed 400 Spaniards and drove the remaining settlers out of the region. It is the only successful Native uprising against a colonizing power in North America.
(Birmingham Museum of Art)