Edison Sandy Smith
Navajo
Edison’s silverwork is done at his studio/home and entirely by hand. His jewelry is made in the old, traditional way. He reminisces of how a nun at the Santa Fe Indian School taught him to make jewelry. Because his eyesight isn’t as good as it once was, Edison is not as productive as he was several years ago. His silverwork is very much in demand by collectors because of his limited production. Edison has certainly earned a place in the history of Navajo silverwork. Edison says “I never made jewelry for money, it was always the art.”
An interview with Edison: “I went to the Institution of American Indian Arts (IAIA) for a year and a half. There I was able to take jewelry making and kept working on my art. You could use all the silver you wanted there, it didn’t cost you anything. If you wanted to make pieces to sell you could buy your own silver and use the shop tools. I made lots of stuff and it was when I began to start to take my work to shops for sale and begin buying turquoise.
“I always wanted to make the pieces I saw as a kid, real Navajo jewelry. I was about working the silver, traditional work, repousse and embossing.
“After IAIA I moved back to Flagstaff and was doing jewelry full time. It was making me a living. After a couple of years in Flagstaff I moved back to the Steamboat area in 1974 and have pretty much been there since, a little back in forth to Flagstaff.
“In 1977 I started with ESS, no sterling or star. In 1981 I used ESS with a sterling stamp, then in 1990 I changed to the hallmark I am still using, ESS w/a sterling stamp and a star.”
