How did you get interested in studying anthropology and archaeology?
I actually became interested in archaeology before I was interested in anthropology. I was given three arrowheads by my grandmother on my seventh birthday, and from then on collecting Indian artifacts was my hobby. I began reading books about archaeology: Gods, Graves, and Scholars by C.W. Ceram was one of my favorites. I thought about pursuing a career in archaeology, but my parents were concerned that I would not be able to make a living that way. So although my real interest and passion was archaeology, I took the entrance exams at Berkeley in architectural engineering and was accepted into their program. In my first semester I took an anthropology course and loved it. I soon changed my major to anthropology, and it has been my life ever since. During my first quarter of graduate study, Clement Meighan asked if I would be interested in working on a project in Peru for seven months. I jumped at the chance. It was challenging, and in some ways difficult, but afterward I knew exactly what I wanted to do with my life. I would be an archaeologist, and I would work in Peru.

Can you tell us about Moche Fineline Painting: Its Evolution and its Artists?
This book is the product of three decades of collaboration with my Research Associate, Donna McClelland. It is based on a sample of more than 2400 Moche ceramic vessels that I have photographed in museums and private collections throughout the world. From these photographs, Donna produced inked drawings of the painted scenes that are wrapped around the vessel chambers. Our book traces the evolution of the Moche fineline painting tradition from the first through the eighth century AD, showing how innovations in features like perspective, anatomical features, costume, and activities caused the painting tradition to develop in the way it did. In the process of our research, we began to recognize multiple paintings by individual artists. This was done by carefully studying the unique characteristics of the painter’s style—often most clearly reflected in the way they depict anatomical features such as eyes, noses, chins, hands, and feet. In many respects, the process is similar to recognizing an individual’s handwriting. Compiling multiple paintings by individual artists allowed us to determine the range of vessel forms on which a Moche artist would paint, the variety of scenes or activities they would depict, and the variability in their treatment of a scene. It also gave us insights into the nature of Moche ceramic production, suggesting that the painters were usually working in workshops and often influencing each other’s work.

What's the state of the fieldwork at the site of Dos Cabezas?
Our primary motivation for excavating at Dos Cabezas is to learn about the beginning of Moche civilization. It is an ideal site to address this question. Its primary occupation began just prior to the beginning of Moche civilization. During the earliest phase of the Moche style, the site experienced a dramatic florescence, with the construction of many palace and pyramid complexes. Shortly thereafter it was abandoned and soon buried in windblown sand. Dos Cabezas had never been excavated prior to our first field season in 1994. We have returned each year since then, uncovering extremely well-preserved domestic, administrative, and religious complexes that reflect a highly stratified society. One part of the site was occupied exclusively by fishermen, while another was occupied by farmers. We have also located and excavated three high-status early Moche tombs, each containing beautiful ceramic vessels and a wealth of gold, silver, and copper objects. We are learning so much from Dos Cabezas that I plan to continue working there. I hope we will find the areas where potters, weavers, and metal smiths were working; it would provide important information about the techniques that were used by Moche artisans, the nature of their production systems, and the degree to which they were attached to and supported by the elite.