Seamus McKillop

Community Collaboration and Knowledge

I am forever grateful to the community members involved in this project for the knowledge they have shared during the shaping of this exhibition and catalogue. When Rick Kinsel, President of the Vilcek Foundation, first described the idea for the project, our priority was to ensure that the voices of the Pueblo co-curators were centered in the making of the exhibition. I am honored to have been a part of this groundbreaking collaboration, which expanded my understanding of Pueblo pottery. These pots are considered to be alive, in fact living relatives of the community members participating in the exhibition, and I think this incredible Zuni pot with deer and heartline designs truly exemplifies that. This pot showcases the classic designs that make Zuni pottery not only unique, but also what it is today as the tradition of pottery-making lives on at Zuni Pueblo.