Son of Frank Samora, a well-known model and public figure of Taos, Yellowbird Samora is a potter from Taos Pueblo who works with micaceous clay. Samora first attempted pottery while at a boarding school in Colorado. He had an accident while skiing, which resulted in a broken back. “During the accident I had a vision of myself in a wheelchair with a sketchpad,” he said. As a result of the accident, Samora enrolled in the Institute of American Indian Arts, where he took pottery classes with Preston Duwyenie and Diego Romero. Through these classes, he learned traditional pottery skills and developed his own style. Pottery is a part-time endeavor for Samora because “there are too many things to do in life.”