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Awa Tsireh“Matachines, c. 1930” by Awa Tsireh San Ildefonso Pueblo Dancers Watercolorcirca 1930
circa 1930
About the Item
About this work:
“Matachines, c. 1930” by Awa Tsireh (1898-1955).
A wonderfully executed example of Awa Tsireh’s work, depicting two ceremonial dancers in the crisp modernist manner that made Tsireh one of the defining figures of early twentieth-century Pueblo painting. The figures are isolated against an open ground with each element given detailed attention: the pointed headdresses, black fringe veils, ribboned backs, scalloped trouser hems, rattles, and painted dance accessories. The two dancers face one another as if caught mid-ceremony, their bodies angled, their hands extended, the entire sheet animated by exchange and ritual movement.  The result is a descriptive and rhythmic visual choreography.
Born Alfonso Roybal at San Ildefonso Pueblo, Awa Tsireh was among the first Native artists to bring Pueblo ceremonial subjects into a modern market for works on paper. Alongside artists such as Fred Kabotie, Tonita Peña, and Julian Martinez, he helped define what became known as the “Studio Style,” a mode characterized by clean outlines, flat areas of color, minimal background, and an emphasis on ceremonial dress and gesture. Awa Tsireh’s best works are not merely ethnographic. They have wit, precision, and a wonderful sense of design. Here, the dancers’ elaborate regalia becomes an almost abstract arrangement of stripes, zigzags, dots, and angular forms, beautifully balanced by the black architectural border and the small vegetal motifs in the lower corners.
The Matachines dance itself is a richly layered ceremonial form, rooted in Spanish colonial religious drama but transformed within Pueblo communities. It is believed to have been taught to the Pueblo peoples by Franciscan missionaries. Its presence in Awa Tsireh’s art is particularly meaningful. Rather than presenting Pueblo culture as fixed or isolated, the subject speaks to its adaptations.
This work is watercolor and ink on paper and is signed in the lower right. It is matted and framed behind UV acrylic.
Size:
11 inches tall by 14.75 inches wide (sheet)
18 inches tall by 21.5 inches wide by 1.75 inches deep (frame)
Provenance:
Private collection, CA;
Acquired from the above
About the artist:
Alfonso Roybal (1898-1955, San Ildefonso Pueblo), better known as Awa Tsireh, was born and raised at San Ildefonso Pueblo in New Mexico.
Widely regarded as one of the most important Pueblo painters of the 20th century, Awa Tsireh was also a farmer, potter, and silversmith. He was employed by the School of American Research in Santa Fe to depict his people’s customs and traditions, along with Fred Kabotie and Velino Shije Herrera.
His work is in major collections including at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Heard Museum in Phoenix, the School of American Research in Santa Fe, the Philbrook Art Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma and Museum of Northern Arizona. Awa Tsireh has been featured in Arizona Highways, Southwest Art and Southwestern Art. Awa Tsireh is cited in “Song from the Earth” by Highwater, “Southwest Indian Painting” by Tanner, “American Indian Painting” by Dunn, “Pueblo Indian Painting” by Brody, “When the Rainbow Touches Down” by Seymour, “American Indian Painters A Biographical Directory” by Snodgrass, and “Biographical Directory of American Indian Painters” by Lester.
His work was the subject of a major solo exhibition at the Smithsonian in Washington DC in 2015-2016.
Condition: Very good overall vintage condition. No signs of any restoration. Paper with subtle, age-appropriate toning. Vintage frame with wear commensurate with age. It is ready to be displayed and enjoyed!
- Creator:Awa Tsireh (1898 - 1955, Pueblo)
- Creation Year:circa 1930
- Dimensions:Height: 18 in (45.72 cm)Width: 21.5 in (54.61 cm)Depth: 1.75 in (4.45 cm)
- Medium:
- Movement & Style:
- Period:
- Condition:Very good overall vintage condition. No signs of any restoration. Paper with subtle, age-appropriate toning. Vintage frame with wear commensurate with age. It is ready to be displayed and enjoyed!
- Gallery Location:Yardley, PA
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU2911218001402
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