Virgil Ortiz (Cochiti), Never Silenced, 2014. Clay, slip, and paint; 9½ x 8½ x 7 in. Denver Art Museum: Gift from Vicki and Kent Logan, 2016.107. © Virgil Ortiz

height: 9 1/2 in, 24.1300 cm; width: 8 1/2 in, 21.5900 cm; depth: 7 in, 17.7800 cm

Native Arts

Indigenous Arts of North America

Ortiz cut into the clay when he was shaping this head to represent similar damage caused by the Spanish in their destruction of Pueblo religious figures during the colonial period. Pueblo people were accused of false idol worship, and their figures were replaced with images of Christian saints. Script of the artist's invention on the back of the head means “giving voice back to the pieces that were destroyed.”

Virgil Ortiz Creations, Cochiti, NM, 2014; (King Galleries), Scottsdale, AZ, about 2014; Purchased by Vicki and Kent Logan, Scottsdale, AZ, 2014-2016; Gifted to the Denver Art Museum, 2016.

• "Virgil Ortiz: Revolution- Rise Against the Invasion," Colorado College, Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center, Colorado Springs, CO, 10/6/2018-1/6/2019