J1838 Kevin Yazzie
Sterling silver tufa cast cuff by Navajo silversmith Kevin Yazzie. The 1” cuff has A lightning pattern with a 3/8" x 3/8" Number 8 turquoise in the center. The inside measurement is 5 1/2” with a 1 1/8” gap.
The Number 8 turquoise mine is in Carlin Nevada. Spider web matrix ranging from golden brown to black set off the beautiful shades of bright powder blue to a deep blue. Number 8 is one of the finest turquoise to come out of Nevada.
Tufa casting is a technique of pouring molten silver into a tufa stone mold and letting it harden into a given form. The mold is only used once; therefore each item is an original piece.
Navajo silversmith Kevin Yazzie learned to make tufa cast jewelry from master silversmith Aaron Anderson. He has been creating jewelry for only a few years, yet shows great diligence, promise and commitment to his craft.
About the artist
Kevin Yazzie
Navajo artist Kevin Yazzie had never made a piece of jewelry until Aaron Anderson invited him to stop by his shop.
“One day Aaron Anderson was in the store (Walgreens) and I was helping him. He was picking up pictures from a trip to Japan and I was full of questions. He told me to stop by his shop and see if I liked jewelry making. I knew who he was but didn’t know him. So, I started hanging out at his studio. I watched everything to see how he did it. Before going to Aaron’s shop I didn’t know anything about jewelry making. He gave me some tufa stone and told me to start carving.”
“I broke my hand soon after making those first pieces and had to have surgery. During this time I would spend all of my free time at Aaron’s study just absorbing everything he did. I broke my right hand and I am right handed. I started carving a piece with my left hand and it was my first really complete piece. Aaron was amazed I did that with my left hand.”
“I stayed at Walgreens for awhile, but I started to get lots of orders for my jewelry and just couldn’t keep up. I wanted to do art and so I left Walgreens to concentrate on jewelry. I am going to apply for the Heard and Santa Fe Indian Market and hopefully get in. Creating jewelry is really rewarding and I want to keep doing this.”
