Artist Spotlight: Daryl Candelaria

Daryl Candelaria is a San Felipe Pueblo artist who creates contemporary shard pottery inspired by prehistoric, historic and contemporary Pueblo designs. We've recently acquired two of his amazing pieces, and we wanted to share a little bit of background info on this talented artist. Daryl was gracious enough to sit down with me and share his story.

Question: How old are you?

Answer: I am 37 years old.

Question: How long have you been an active potter?

Answer: I have been potting for about 10 years now.

Question: Where did you get the idea of combing shards to make your pottery?

Answer: My idea of creating shard pots came from finding broken pottery shards walking among Pueblo ruins and coming across shards around my pueblo. My shards depict prehistoric, historic and contemporary styles of pueblo pottery.

Question: Who taught you to pot?

Answer: My maternal grandmother Juanita Toledo from Jemez Pueblo and my mom Sara Candelaria both taught me the basics of pottery making. I currently make pottery from clay obtained at San Felipe Pueblo which is where my father is from and where I reside today.

Question: What is your favorite part of pottery making?

Answer: My favorite part is forming the piece as I find it very soothing and relaxing and just seeing the piece come to life is a gratifying experience in itself.

Question: Have you won any awards?

Answer: I have won numerous awards for my work. I have taken 1st place awards at the Santa Fe Indian Market as well as numerous 2nd, 3rd and Honorable mention awards as well.

Question: Is there anything else you would like collector's to know about you?

Answer: As an accomplished potter, I have had the opportunity to show my work in a number of shows including exhibitions in Santa Fe, Albuquerque, Denver, Phoenix, Scottsdale and Honolulu. I was also invited to participate in the World Ceramic Exhibition representing the United States in 2001 in Seoul, South Korea. My work is also in numerous private and museum collections including: the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture in Santa Fe; the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center in Albuquerque; the School of American Research in Santa Fe; the Denver Art Museum; the Mint Museum in Raleigh, North Carolina; and the Museum of Ceramics in Seoul, South Korea.


To see Daryl's work, visit PuebloDirect.com.