Mary Witkop
P.O. Box 114
ARROYO SECO, NM 87514
505-776-1653
POTTERY
Mary Witkop
creates coil-built, stone burnished micaceous earthenware. Making
pottery has been her life, she admits for almost 36 years.
Place is important to her too. She thinks
Pilar is one of the finest places to live, with it's "natural
beauty full of wonderful friends and neighbors." She fires
all her pots in Pilar.
She's always been interested in pottery, but
an anthropology course at Colorado State University stimulated
her to begin making pottery influenced by Mezoamerica in 1969.
Witkop loves her work and the medium she has
chosen. She uses natural mineral oxides for her wide range of
colors. She likes the burnishing results she gets by hand rubbing
each pot twice with a water smoothed basalt stone. To achieve
some finishes she uses horse hair or feathers. One gazes with
amazement at the thinness of the pot walls and the unique finishes.
It's no wonder that Mary Witkop has been selected "Best
in Show" in modern pottery at the prestigious "Taos
Invites Taos show 8 times in a row!
Pursuing her art has been easy, because of
the simplicity and availability of the materials she uses (she
collects her own clay) and the great responses from people who
see the finished product.
The things she looks for in making her earthenware
are exciting results in firing, a mixture of colors, and a perfect
polish.
Mary is known for her dedication to the process
by creating almost every day. It's no wonder her work is so impressive.
These days, she is experimenting with a new slip (the creamy
clay mixture used in decorating. She can also be visited in her
Ranchos de Taos Studio.
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