Gonzales, Marie Ann
Born into San Ildefonso Pueblo, Marie Ann Gonzales was the daughter of Lorenzo Gonzales and Delores Naquayoma (Hopi). Her father had first been adopted by Ramona and Juan Gonzales but when he finished high school, he moved to Louis and Juanita Gonzales‘ home while he sorted out what he was going to do next. He joined the Army.
On his discharge from the Army, he returned to the pueblo and soon after, met and married Delores and started a family. Shortly after that, their family was chosen by the Bureau of Indian Affairs to be relocated to a large city on the East Coast so their children would grow up immersed in the general American culture and, hopefully, would melt in and disappear in it. That didn’t work so well: the family didn’t melt in and eventually, all returned to San Ildefonso.
Among Marie’s siblings were John Gonzales, Raymond Gonzales, Robert Gonzales, Jeanne Gonzales, Larencita Gonzales and Linda Gonzales. For the most part, the Gonzales children did grow up attending public schools in middle America without being separated from their parents like so many other Native American children were. Marie’s brother John excelled at school and eventually gathered enough scholarship money to earn his BA at Stanford University and his Masters in City Planning at MIT.
Like John, Marie learned to make pottery from their father and from their sister-in-law, Barbara Gonzales after they returned to San Ildefonso. Marie made mostly jars and bowls decorated with sgraffito designs. Some of those had turquoise inlays, some were painted, some were lightly carved.
Some Awards earned by Marie
- 1998 Santa Fe Indian Market. First Place and Third Place in the sgraffito with stone or metal category;
– Third Place in the plates category - 1985 Gallup InterTribal Ceremonial. Best of Class
- 1984 Santa Fe Indian Market. Second Place in the sgraffito with or without stones category