Quezada, Dora

Dora Quezada is the only daughter of Consolacion Quezada. When Dora was twelve, Consolacion started her down the path by teaching her how to sand and polish pots. She also learned from her uncles Juan Quezada Sr. and Reynaldo Quezada. It was Reynaldo who taught her how to make blackware. By the time she finished high school, Dora could build, sand, polish, paint, etch and fire her own pots. Then she married Pedro Valenzuela, a mechanic from the city of La Junta (a six-hour train ride south of Mata Ortiz) and moved there.

In La Junta, Dora continued making pottery but she had to ship it back to her mother to sell: there was no pottery market in La Junta like there was in Mata Ortiz. Then after a few years Dora found herself a single mother of four. She returned to Mata Ortiz and was able to support her family with the proceeds from her pottery sales.

Dora makes mostly incised pottery using black, cream or white clays. Or mixed colors of clay. Her designs are often cuadrillos-based, with a central animal or fish motif. She’s known for the consistent high quality of her work.