To celebrate the centennial of Santa Fe Indian Market, the New Mexico History Museum is hosting a special exhibition to honor the past 100 years of the famous event and its lasting contribution to Native American art and culture, the beauty and mystique of the Southwest and history of Santa Fe.
Maria Martinez (1887-1980) and Julian Martinez (1879-1943), polychrome jar. Courtesy of the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture.
The exhibition, Honoring Tradition and Innovation: 100 Years of Santa Fe’s Indian Market 1922-2022, will open August 7, just in time to welcome visitors arriving into Santa Fe during its festive summer lineup of events in August, including Indian Market on August 20 and 21. The exhibition was initiated by the Southwest Association for Indian Arts, or SWAIA, which is the producer of Indian Market. The exhibition itself was curated by Cathy Notarnicola, the curator of Southwest history at the New Mexico History Museum.
Displays at the first Southwest Indian Fair in the Armory building, Santa Fe, New Mexico, 1922. Courtesy of the Palace of the Governors Photo Archives (NMHM/DCA), 023317.
“We are very fortunate to put on this exhibition because the first market was actually held by the Museum of New Mexico, which was in the Palace of the Governors. The museum now sits where the Armory Building once stood, which was the exact location of the market in 1922,” says Notarnicola. “I think visitors will be happy to learn some of these pieces of history. Another one that might surprise people is that the Native American artists did not interact directly with the public while selling their goods. It was done by non-Native museum staff who ran those first markets. It wasn’t until 1931, when the market moved outside under the portal of Palace of the Governors, that artists were directly responsible for interacting with guests and selling their artwork. It’s funny to think about because that aspect—just talking with the artists—is one of the more popular aspects of Santa Fe Indian Market.”
Pueblo pottery vendors on Palace of the Governors portal during Fiesta, Santa Fe, New Mexico, 1948. Photo by Robert H. Martin. Courtesy of the Palace of the Governors Photo Archives (NMHM/DCA), 041392.
Hopi artist Elsie Talahytewa at Santa Fe Indian Market, Santa Fe, New Mexico, 1991. Photographer: Annie Sahlin. Courtesy of the Palace of the Governors Photo Archives (NMHM/DCA), HP.2013.12.081
Although there are key bits of history about the first market—called Indian Fair, itself a smaller component to Santa Fe Fiesta—some of that history is lost to time. What is known is that there were likely less than 50 artists represented, one of the top selling pieces sold for $13.20, and the prize money hovered around $5. One of the early award winners was San Ildefonso Pueblo potter Maria Martinez, whose 1922 award-winning pot is in the exhibition. Another historical footnote: in 1932 Indian Market left Santa Fe and rotated among the pueblos. The practice was abandoned in 1936 and it returned to Santa Fe, where it resides today.
Nancy Youngblood (Santa Clara Pueblo), Pottery Jar. Purchased from the artist at Indian Market where it won best in classification, August 2018. Courtesy of the JoAnn and Bob Balzer Collection. Photo by Kitty Leaken.
Another component of the show that will surprise visitors is how Santa Fe Indian Market would come to mirror and symbolize—the good and the bad—what Native Americans were experiencing in the country at any given point over the last century. For example, in 1934, the United States government passed the Indian Reorganization Act, which reinforced tribal sovereignty across the country. Around that same time, Native American artists were taking a stronger lead with their own work, including selling it. “There is often a direct connection and reflection in the country to what was happening at Indian Market,” Notarnicola says. “And then we have where the market is today with up to 1,200 artists in 600 booths serving 100,000 people. It’s really remarkable what it has become.”
August 7, 2022-August 31, 2023
Honoring Tradition and Innovation: 100 Years of Santa Fe’s Indian Market 1922-2022
New Mexico History Museum,
113 Lincoln Avenue, Santa Fe, NM 87501
(505) 476-5200, www.nmhistorymuseum.org
Powered by Froala Editor
