Setalla, Stetson

“A clear mind and good heart is crucial in assisting you with your painting because the designs flow through your mind into your hand and onto your pot without difficulty.”

Hopi-Tewa potter Stetson Setalla was born in June 1962, the son of Justin Navasie and Pauline Setalla, brother of Gwen Setalla, Dee Setalla, Karen Namoki and Agnes Nahsonhoya. His mother was from Mishongnovi on Second Mesa, his father from Sichomovi on First Mesa. He and his nine siblings grew up on a ranch in the Snowbird Canyon area, near Keams Canyon.

When he was 19, Stetson asked his mother to teach him how to make pottery. He credits her with doing an excellent job: he was established enough to be mentioned in Rick Dillingham’s 1994 book Fourteen Families in Pueblo Pottery.