Both Linda and Merton, a married couple, have a long heritage of pottery in their families.

Together they carry on these family traditions, and include on their pottery a triangle mark to symbolize three generations of potting.

Their pots are traditional hand-coiled, pit-fired pueblo pottery from local clay.

They are among only a few potters in Santa Clara who continue to make the black-on-black pottery in the traditional manner.

However, their removal by the state's Department of Cultural Affairs was controversial, viewed by some as unwarranted intrusion into self-administration by the artists displaying their work at the portal.