Lucero, Mary

A granddaughter of Narciso and Magelita Lucero and daughter of Margaret Lucero, Mary Rose Lucero was born into the Fire Clan of Jemez Pueblo in 1948. She hand-coiled her first piece of pottery around the age of 14 when she began learning from her grandmother.

In the early days of her career she made traditional Jemez jars and bowls but that didn’t satisfy her heart the way she wanted. These days she’s much happier making nativities, storytellers, Flights-to-Egypt, animals and other figures.

Mary’s work is recognizable immediately from her exquisite care and attention to detail. She is also known for being imaginative, innovative and humorous with her pieces, decorating them with multiple natural clay and mineral colors found across the Jemez landscape.

Mary has passed her knowledge and techniques on to her daughters, Diane and Joyce Lucero, both of whom are also award-earning traditional potters. Diane passed her knowledge on to her son, Clayton Lucero, and he’s established himself as a fine maker of storytellers, figures and nativities. Mary’s younger sister is Carol Gachupin, another award-earning potter from Jemez Pueblo.