DAVID K. (D.K.) LISTER
(Navajo)
The Lister family, with Alice Lister and David Lister at the helm, are one of the most highly regarded families of Navajo jewelry makers working today; their renowned pieces in turquoise and sterling silver represent meticulous traditional methods and both traditional and contemporary designs.
Living on the vast Navajo Reservation in northeastern Arizona, David Lister and Alice Lister, both silversmiths, have practiced their artistry together for thirty-five years, passing their craft on to four of their daughters, including their youngest, Davida Lister, who lives and works with them and Dee Nez, who lives across the street and also works alongside her parents in the same workshop. It is land where David’s grandmother once lived and which now houses several homes, workshops, sheds and horses - and from which exquisite jewelry makes its way to eager and discerning collectors.
Each Lister creates their own pieces from start to finish, the only collaboration being some pieces which Alice Lister and David Lister create together, and each individual has their own distinctive style: Alice Lister puts a modern twist on traditional ideas and prefers to work with blue-green turquoise while David Lister also likes working with coral and tends to include stamp work; Dee Nez likes lots of color with the oranges of spiny oyster turning up alongside turquoise, blue lapis, green gaspeite or purple sugilite; pieces by Davida Lister are defined by the depth and size of her stones and she enjoys collecting from a wide variety of mines.
Silversmiths Alice and David Lister, who helm one of today's most highly regarded families of Navajo jewelers, reflect both tradition and contemporary style in their stunning hand-cast work. Alice often features blue-green Turquoise Mountain stones in her pieces, which draw inspiration from her dreams and from the stones, as well as from modern fashion. Alice notes, "I look through modern fashion magazines and put the turquoise where the diamonds are." David is drawn to coral and stamp work. When they collaborate, David makes his own stamp dies and Alice acts as lapidary.
The couple married in 1972 and has been making silver and gold jewelry together since 1975. Their small, tidy workshop on the Navajo reservation in northeastern Arizona hosts both Alice and David, as well as their daughter Dee Nez and, on weekends, her younger sister Clarissa Hale and husband Vernon – all accomplished jewelers. (Andrienna Tapaha and Andee Lister, two other Lister daughters, craft jewelry in Flagstaff.) Alice and David typically work only with galleries in Sedona.
All of their silver is hand-cast; all of their stones are of the highest quality, all natural and untreated. From necklaces, cuffs, earrings, buckles and bolo ties, the Lister family sets a high standard in the world of high-end Navajo jewelry.
