Lydia Quezada and Rito Talavera

Mata Ortiz

Lydia Quezada is the youngest sister of Juan Quezada and she learned the art of making pottery from him. She taught her husband, Rito Talavera, to make pots, too, and has been teaching her children.

Lydia was producing black-on-black pottery early in her career, then moved to polished and matte black surfaces, then to a three-black design process. Then she moved to making large ollas of black and cream polychromes. Rito's general pieces tend to be stone-polished blackware with sculptural forms of turtles, lizards and snakes added to the rims and the upper sides of his ollas.


Mimbres and geometric designs on a black on black on black jar
Black on black on black jar with an organic opening and Mimbres and geometric designs
8.5 in H by 6.5 in Dia
Measurement includes stand
Kiva step organic opening on a black on black on black vase
Black on black on black vase with an organic kiva step opening
14 in H by 9 in Dia
Measurement includes stand
Geometric designs and red lines on a black on black jar
Black on black jar with geometric designs and red lines
12.5 in H by 7.25 in Dia
Measurement includes stand
Organic opening on a black on black on black jar
Black on black on black jar with an organic opening
9.5 in H by 6 in Dia
Measurement includes stand
Paquime geometric designs and an organic opening on a black on black on black jar
Black on black on black jar with an organic opening and Paquime geometric designs
11 in H by 6.25 in Dia
Measurement includes stand
Geometric design on a black on black on black vase
Black on black on black vase decorated with geometric design
10 in H by 6.5 in Dia
Measurement includes stand
Incised and geometric design on a brown on black jar
Brown on black jar with incised and geometric design
9.25 in H by 5.75 in Dia
Geometric design on a black on black on black vase
Black on black on black vase decorated with a geometric design
10 in H by 6.25 in Dia
Measurement includes stand
Geometric design and organic opening on a black on black on black vase
Black on black on black vase with geometric design and organic opening
12.25 in H by 7.25 in Dia
Measurement includes stand
An organic opening and geometric design on a black on black on black vase
Black on black on black vase with an organic opening and geometric design
12 in H by 6.75 in Dia
Measurement includes stand
Organic opening on a black on black jar with a red geometric design
Red and black geometric design on a black on black jar with an organic opening
7.5 in H by 6.5 in Dia
Measurement includes stand
Geometric design on a black on black on black jar with an organic opening
Black on black on black jar with an organic opening and decorated with a geometric design
9.5 in H by 6 in Dia
Measurement includes stand
Organic opening on a black on black on black jar with a geometric design
An organic opening on a black on black on black jar decorated with a geometric design
9 in H by 6.5 in Dia
Geometric design on a black on black on black jar with an organic cut opening
Black on black on black jar with an organic cut opening and decorated with a geometric design
8 in H by 7.25 in Dia
Geometric design on a black on black vase
Black on black vase decorated with a geometric design
12.5 in H by 7.75 in Dia
Measurement includes stand
Black on black on black jar with a geometric design and an organic opening
An organic opening and a geometric design on a black-on-black-on-black jar
9 in H by 7 in Dia

Mata Ortiz/Casas Grandes Potters