Richard Chavez Lapis Coral Turquoise and Yellow Gold Ring 1997

A beauty and an investment piece, this lapis lazuli, coral, turquoise, wood, and 14-karat gold shield ring was made by Hopi modernist artist and jeweler Charles Loloma, c. 1970. This ring sits comfortably on the finger and is a finely made Loloma shield ring using high-quality stones, a vintage jewel in excellent condition, and representative of the modernist master jeweler Loloma’s best work. Similar examples are shown in the standard text on Loloma, "Loloma: Beauty is His Name" by Martha Hopkins Streuver, 2005. The proportion of metal to stone is balanced, and the color scheme is harmonious. The shield rings in gold have become hard to find. The prices for the best jewelry by this transformative jeweler have risen even further, as witnessed by several recent auctions. Signed Loloma, stamped 14k. Ring size 5.. Hopi artist Charles Loloma was one of the most influential 20th-century modernist jewelers. He was a Renaissance man of the times - a potter, a painter, a muralist, a poet, and a religious ceremonial leader. Living high on the Hopi mesas, he broke multiple imposed prohibitions on Native American jewelers and despite being excluded in his early years from important shows because his jewelry was not Ïndian enough" he simply continued working and changed the arc of his peoples' jewelry making and universal jewelry culture forever. (Loloma told his doubters, it was sufficient that he was an Indian for his jewelry to be considered Indian jewelry.) Through his modernist influence on jewelry, he transformed the design and lapidary techniques - height inlay, styles of shanks and bezel settings, and the use of new materials - lapis lazuli, wood, gold - in much of southwestern Native American jewelry for generations to come, He introduced this new form of beauty to the broader world. Loloma’s pieces can be found in almost all important museums and private collections. Frank Lloyd Wright was a client. Mahnaz Collection carries the finest Loloma jewelry (and select artworks) and the jewel works of his only two acknowledged proteges - his niece Verma Nequetewa aka Sonwai, and the French artist jeweler Eveli Sabatie.

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