The American Museum of Ceramic Art of Pomona, Calif., is presenting its latest exhibit, “Pueblo Clay,” through July 12, according to ArtDaily.org. It’s a showcase of Native American pottery, especially from the Southwest.
What does this event have to do with Route 66? Plenty.
The construction of a Chicago-to-Los Angeles highway, officially designated Route 66 in 1926, was another factor that contributed to growth of commercial Native American art production. Soon rivaling the railroad, the highway spawned a multitude of small service businesses to support the traveler. The post-World-War-II penchant for automobile travel brought motels, garages, and diners to the roadside, and in the deserts of the Southwest, trading posts, where many a westward-bound traveler would stop and buy Native American jewelry, pottery, rugs, kachina dolls and other crafts. Pottery representing this time period – the 1930s, ’40s, and ’50s – was mostly unsigned; however, with the rise to fame of Maria Martinez (1887–1980), whose black-on-black pottery gained wide-spread notoriety, there came an significant shift. Maria Martinez and a few others began to scratch their names into the bottom of their pots, and more and more potters began to follow suit.
Simply put, the Mother Road brought a huge pottery market to Native Americans’ front door.
Photos of a few of the pottery pieces on display can be seen here.