Description

María Martinez and her husband, Julian, achieved international fame for black-on-black ware, which they began to make in 1918. The process involves painting a pattern in slip—a creamy mix of clay and water—on a surface that has already been uniformly slipped and then polished. With firing, the exposed polished areas become glossy while the second layer of slip retains a matte finish. Along with her husband, María Martinez worked with other family members, here her daughter-in-law Santana Roybal Martinez.