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Sunday, August 31, 2008
Harlan's Birds
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Friday, August 29, 2008
Beyond the Jewelry: Pouch, Purse, or Bag?
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Thursday, August 28, 2008
Bringing Home The Blue Ribbon
As I wrote earlier, Sandy and I felt like two kids at a State Fair at the 87th Annual Santa Fe Indian Market. In fact, had you seen Sandy carrying home the blue ribbon with her happy, confident smile, you might have thought she'd just won it for a competitive mince meat pie or pickle competition. But no, the true prize belonged to the husband and wife team of Ruddell and Nancy Lanconsello of Zuni, New Mexico. Blue Ribbons for superior jewelry creations are commonplace in their lives. They've been winning them for more than a quarter of century. The ribbon pictured was awarded for the fabulous sterling silver concho link belt they entered this year. It was a thrill for us to acquire this stunning belt, and we were absolutely delighted to meet both artists for the first time at this year's show. The belt is 10 ounces, each concho is 2 inches in diameter, and the belt measures 32 1/3 inches in overall length. The belt is a product of an overlay, inlay technique. Designs are first drawn on paper then cut out in silver and placed over a base sheet of sterling. The colorful gem stones are then individually cut and inlaid with tight precision. They are then indivdiually etched to add additional depth. Appraised value of concho belt: $12,000. Blue Ribbon Thrill: well you've heard the commercials. Matching Bird Image with gemstone depictions; well that's fun too, the list includes: Blue crowned Motmot, Toco Toucan, Hyacinth Macaw, Sulphur Crested Cockatoo, Blue and Gold Macaw, Gould's Finch, Scarlet Macaw, Plate-billed Mountain Toucan, Greater Bird of Paradise, and Cock of the Rock.
SOLD
Sunday, August 24, 2008
Elephant Man
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Sandy and I enjoyed the annual Santa Fe Indian Market this year like two young children at a State Fair. We circulated from booth to booth observing, discovering, absorbing, and establishing contacts with many Native American artists. One of the absolute highlights came with our discovery of Darrell Jumbo, the Elephant Man. I had just finished a careful overview of Dina Huntinghorses' high end, gold laden jewelry pieces; as I rounded the corner I noticed a distinctive tall, lean faced Navajo man with a prominent pony tail dressed in a top hat and tails. His pants were informal sterling silver studded shorts. Beaded conchos held dangling backward leaning feathers at both shoulders. He wore boot moccasins. I thought I was in for a treat when I heard him discussing one of his pieces called "Damn Sam." As I moved forward to listen intently, he flashed his broad smile. He said the inspiration for his comic creation "Damn Sam" was from his childhood years when he and his buddies would steal vegetables from a neighbor's farm patch and hide in his irrigation ditch to consume their purloined fresh harvest with salt and pepper garnish. The farmer never caught on and blamed the "damned rabbits" for his crop loss and so it was that rabbit Sam was one who had to endure the stinging wrath of the farmer's BB gun. On hearing this tale, I so wanted the sterling silver "Damn Sam", but the man beside me had arrived first hand and pulled out cash to seal the deal. Fortunately, Mr. Jumbo had several other creations and I chose the 18K gold nosed "Oh Dear" pin to carry home. Having noted the enthusiasm Sandy and I showed on discovering his art, Jumbo talked with us at length. I finally extended my hand in friendship as a prelude to my exist, but he appeared to ignored it. Instead, much to our delight, he stepped out of his booth and gave us both a big bear hug.
Darrell was most fortunate to have received his initial silversmithing training under Master Silversmith Norbert Pleshlaki. It was Norbert who gave him his artisan name, Elephant Man. His hallmark is an elephant symbol as shown in the image above.
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
Anticipating Indian Market
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