The face masks will initially feature a turtle and multicolor animal designs. Photograph by Inga Hendrickson.
Throughout her 40 years as an artist, Jody Naranjo (Santa Clara Pueblo) has created hundreds of original designs in clay and bronze featuring whimsical creatures, adobe homes stacked Pueblo-style, and smiling Indigenous women. Now the Pueblo potter is showing her softer side with the January release of colorful face masks and other wearable goods emblazoned with her iconic corn maidens and animals. “Not everyone can buy pots, but everyone can wear these masks,” Naranjo says. The initial turtle and multicolor animal designs, produced in limited-edition runs of 300, will be followed by bold prints of dragonflies and Pueblo women holding traditional pottery. “It’s so nice to get my designs out there and see them in different places.”