Santa Clara Pueblo artist Nancy Youngblood is among the most exceptional, award-winning Native American potters of the past half century. During a new exhibition this April at King Galleries, the artist will highlight her unique style and signature melon rib aesthetic. Titled Water Jar and Waterfalls, the show focuses on Youngblood’s take on the water jar—an iconic vessel in Santa Clara pottery, which Youngblood uses as a voice for pueblo culture and tradition. On the surface, she carves melon ribs into the clay, then stone polishes each rib, creating forms that seem to undulate back and forth. Youngblood dubs this modernist style her “waterfall” ribs.
Water Jar with 32 “S” Swirl Ribs, native clay, coil-built, traditionally fired
Water Jar and Waterfall Jar, native clay, coil-built, traditionally fired
“Few artists create a style that becomes synonymous with their name, let alone in their own lifetime. For Nancy Youngblood, her carved melon bowls are what immediately come to mind when she is mentioned,” says gallery owner Charles King. “Her melon ribs transcend into flowing waterfalls as they cascade down the vessel. In turn, the deeply carved water jars are so highly polished, they almost appear to be wet. Few potters have the technical ability and creative depth to combine visual and esoteric concepts in clay.”
Waterfall Lidded Box, native clay, coil-built, traditionally fired
Waterfall Oval Jar, native clay, coil-built, traditionally fired
64-Rib Red Bowl with Waterfall Lid, native clay, coil-built, traditionally fired
All vessels in the show are coil-built with native clay, traditionally fired, and feature Youngblood’s stark black and terracotta colors.
“After 50 years of making pottery, Nancy Youngblood is iconic if not legendary,” King adds. “It is not the number of awards, or even her innovation of the sharp carved ribbed melon bowls. It is the consistent precision of her art that one finds striking over the years. She was among the first Native potters to enter into the world of ‘fine art,’ and she continues to be a role model for younger artists. She is a reflection of the best in Native art and how to achieve success and still remain culturally connected.”
Water Jar and Waterfalls will be on view at King Galleries’ Scottsdale, Arizona, location from April 9 to 23, with a reception on opening day from 6 to 8 p.m. —
King Galleries
April 9-23, 2026
7077 E. Main, Suite 20, Scottsdale, AZ 85251
(480) 481-0187, www.kinggalleries.com
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