Marcella Yepa was born into the Sun Clan on Jemez Pueblo in 1964. Inspired by her aunt, Marcella began working with clay at the age of 19. Marcella’s aunt taught her the fundamentals of hand coiling traditional pottery and other special techniques. Her aunt also shared which hills provided the best clay. Marcella specializes in hand coiled contemporary swirl and melon styled pottery.

She gathers her clay and other natural pigments from within Jemez Pueblo. In the traditional way, she prepares the clay and hand coils many shapes and sizes of pottery including wedding vases, ollas and traditional shapes. She works in red, buff, green and charcoal, sometimes adding a micaceous slip for subtle sparkle.