A Village of Artists: Third Visit

ZUNI: A VILLAGE OF ARTISTS

THIRD VISIT

GARRY VACIT SIGNED THIS PAINTING OF SHALAKO AS VACITO

ERNIE LALIO WITH THE ORIGINAL TEXAS CANYON HOT SHOTS

EAGLE DANCER BY ERNIE LALIO — 1955 WAS A GOOD YEAR

It seems like all Zunis have a gene for artwork and it comes out in many different ways. Often really good artists—pencil, ink, or paint—find their first creative outlet in watercolors because pencils, paint and poster board are fairly cheap. And public school supplies the means and a bit of education. Unfortunately most of the talented young people move on to more profitable mediums like carving, pottery, or jewelry; sometimes all three. When Teddy Weahkee started painting in the early Thirties, he got in some trouble with tribal leaders who criticized his use of religious figures. Eighty years later this issue has not been settled and probably never will be. In every time and place, artists have ignored—even defied—cultural restrictions. Teacher and administrator Clara Gonzales found young artists in the school with talent and gave them an outlet. Years ago when I talked with Sam Poblano about Gonzales’ supportive attitude, he thought she had hidden the artwork from the censors. Her ambitious and wonderful use of student artists to paint covers for each and every school yearbook would have been hard to hide. Porfilio Sheyka, Dixon Shebala, Pete Gasper, Joseph Pinto, and Barton Ghahate were some of the illustrators of yearbook covers. That list is probably incomplete. Being a competent sketch artist is a valuable talent for other arts. Anthony Edaakie was not only multitalented, he was also very generous. More than one person in Zuni has told me Anthony made patterns for them to use in their jewelry. Porfilio Sheyka was another jeweler who was also an accomplished artist. Pete Gasper is best known today for his fine fetish work, but he was a master silversmith before that. He was identified as one of the yearbook artists. The largest piece of his work I have seen was painted in 1958. It is meticulously done, carefully colored and clean with tight, pleasing lines. Some time ago, I found two paintings by Ernie Lalio, a person I had never heard of. They were first rate and I wanted to know more about him. Ernie Lalio was born in 1934, so he came of age in the fifties when Zuni was a place transformed. That was the period when Zuni got electricity, running water, sewers, and a good road into Gallup. Ernie was in high school during the period the art scene was gaining momentum. The Indian Art School in Santa Fe was

Ernie’s Second Selfie

West by Southwest

by Ernie Bulow

transforming to be more inclusive, with broader interests and a less restrictive administration [though still under the Department of Indian Affairs].

Like several other Zunis, Ernie didn’t pursue his art because he became an original member of the elite firefighting unit known as the Hot Shots. His father, Old Man Lalio, was governor for three terms. He was an early conservationist, a leader in agriculture, and was instrumental in the creation of Ojo Dam. Later, Ernie became a plumber. He has a painting in the Smithsonian Collection and the Phoenix Museum. Another famous jeweler ROGER TSABETSAYE’S PRIZE WINNING who created in PAINTING —AS A CEREMONIAL several mediums NOTECARD was Gary Vacit, who made jewelry with his wife Paulinis. The charming Shalako painting shown here was

ROGER AT CEREMONIAL ANOTHER OF ERNIE LALIO’S PAINTINGS

painted in 1958, and for some reason he signed it “Garry Vacito”.

Roger Tsabetsaye may hold the record for creative diversity. He went to Santa Fe the first year of the newly minted Institute of American Indian Arts (1963). Though he attended to study painting, he was soon encouraged to try other things, including fabric design. He offered his fabric at Ceremonial in Gallup. But with a rare scholarship, he moved to New York and for a few years, he created his stunning silver hollow ware.

For several years, he had his own store in Zuni. He was one of the founders of the Zuni Craftsmen’s Co-Op and served as an instructor in jewelry arts. He also had a project to produce Zuni pottery. One year when he was packing up in Santa Fe, he didn’t have enough room and threw away one painting. But the painting didn’t find its way to the garbage can. An article in the newspaper showed the painting being handed off by Secretary of State Ernestine Evans. The caption of the photo calls it “Zuni masterpiece titled ‘Man’”. That’s my favorite Roger Tsabetsaye story.

In the seventies, a painting of Tsabetsaye’s won the Ceremonial poster contest, but because it showed katsinas (Rain Dancers) somebody protested and it was never printed. Later, Ceremonial brought it out as a note card.

He also has a painting in the Smithsonian Collection. Secretary of the Interior under Kennedy was Stewart Udall from St. Johns, Arizona. His wife Lee wanted to “do something for the Indians” so she created an art collection under the umbrella of the Smithsonian. “Arts of Indian America” was what she named her endeavor and the Institute of American Indian Art was the offspring of her efforts. Lalio was just one of the Zuni artists chosen for that Collection.