The exhibition delves into the rich vocabulary of design, technique, materials, the use of turquoise and coral and beadwork, the hand of the maker, and the uses of new tools and old techniques in the jewelry arts. It will visually articulate how jewelers seek to balance preserving their cultures with embracing modern and industrial materials and aesthetics and how they have tried to preserve their own design identities while facing economic needs and the demands of tourists, dealers, and collectors.

In celebration of this exhibition Mahnaz Collection hosted two exciting in-gallery conversations.

“Balancing Tradition, the Modern, and the Contemporary in Native American Jewelry Design: What Might the Future Hold?” a conversation moderated by Vogue fashion and style writer Christian Allaire (Ojibwe) with jewelry artist Pat Pruitt (Laguna, Chiricahua Apache and Anglo descent) and Elias Jade Not Afraid (Apsalooka/ Crow Nation). (CLICK ON GRAPHIC TO WATCH BELOW)

Elias Jade Not Afraid: [If we do not keep sharing the traditions] they are just going die out. It'll become that the only time you'll see them is in history books. It's kind of our duty to kind of keep pushing boundaries with these certain things.

“Maker + Museum Scholar: Native American Jewelry Design, its Significance + Futures,” a talk between John Stuart Gordon, Curator of American Decorative Arts at Yale University Art Gallery, and Judy Geib, jewelry designer and goldsmith. (CLICK ON GRAPHIC TO WATCH BELOW)

To SHOP this Exhibition, as well as other pieces from our extensive collection of Native American jewelry please visit our Collections page here.