Old Pascua, Tucson

6 ½ Inches (excluding hair), painted wood with cowtail brows and beard. Undanced.

Frank “Chico” Martinez, was a Yoeme/Yaqui, living in Old Pascua, who died in 2006. He was  all his life a pascola dancer and  mask carver. Frank, as one of the premier carvers in the Tucson area, is favored by many collectors. When he danced as a Pascola years ago Frank did wear masks that he carved for himself. Like many other modern carvers of his generation, he has gone beyond the traditional forms, carving wolves, monkeys, horses, roosters and even frogs, which are generally rather vivid and attractive. I have a number of these in my collection, undanced but delightful. This mask is unusual, with its humorous mouth and cheek crosses, there are unlikely to be many more like it, as was often the case with Frank’s masks.

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