Ortiz, Eduardo aka Chevo

Eduardo Chevo Ortiz and his wife, Hortencia Dominguez de Ortiz, were prolific potters until Chevo died in December 2011. Early in their careers in Mata Ortiz they produced a lot of polychrome pottery using Paquimé Revival styles and designs. Later in life, they were known for producing elegant black and black-on-black pottery. Usually, Chevo would make the pieces, Hortencia would sand and polish them, then he would paint the basic designs, she would fill in the blanks and he would do the firing.

Chevo was one of the original innovators in Mata Ortiz and was known as one of the best potters in town. He was most famous for producing three kinds of jars:

– Jars with 4 round concave sides highly decorated with cuadrillos
– Black jars with pottery rings, some with hooks attached to the rims as though for hanging
– Black jars with formed melon-like spirals rotating downward from rim to base

Andrea Fisher visited Mata Ortiz for several days in 2009. There was a dinner held in her honor on the last evening of her visit. Chevo was invited and he appeared wearing a shirt. It was one of the only times in his adult life anyone could remember him wearing a shirt, and he’d clearly had to buy one for the occasion. But that’s a sign of the respect Mata Ortiz potters feel for Andrea.