About

Jacquita Beddo lives and work in the beautiful and creative little artist community of Abiquiu, New Mexico. Of course, Georgia O’Keefe made the little village famous for it’s light and colorful landscape. She  was born in Roswell, New Mexico and raised there. She enjoyed a large family with an even bigger extended family. That meant aunts, uncles, a bunch of cousins and she knew not only her grandparents but great grandparents as well. She was recognized in her clan as a creative, talented, little girl. She was a maker from the start getting involved with and learning from all the wonderful women who brought a creative spark to quilting, sewing, and all sorts of “crafts”. A gift from her father was spending lots of time at the two local museums in Roswell both of which are excellent art museums.

When Jacquita went off to college she landed in the Theater department. She spent her time there in costume and make-up design. She loved creative likenesses the most where you take an individual and transform them into another person through make-up. It would be a great foundation for what was to come next.

In college at New Mexico State University she met the love of her life, a shy grad student in Physics. When they married, they went to Los Alamos so he could do his thesis experiment at the particle accelerator there. It was actually there in Los Alamos at the branch college for the University of New Mexico that she first touched clay. It was a class that simply sounded like fun but set her on the path to pursue a degree in Studio Arts and then a career.

The arrival of their son slowed down that process a bit but of course made their lives richer. Another unintended gift was that in order to finish her degree in Studio Art at UNM she had to travel all over Northern New Mexico to get enough upper division art classes which made her education much more diverse.

Then after several years in 2-dimensional art Jacquita returned to her first love ceramic sculpture about 7 years ago. Since then she also became involved with the New Mexico Potters and Clay Artists the NMPCA. She is currently serving as their president. This gave her what she was craving “clay community.” This group gave her a place to grow as an artist. A safe place to ask questions and get feedback.