Charles Loloma Silver and Multi-colored Stone Inlay size 5-½ Ring [SOLD]

There is no mistaking this spectacular ring for anyone other than Charles Loloma’s work.  A hand-shaped silver band with channel inlay creates the base for his distinct multi-stone standing inlay design.  Around the base are flush-cut pieces of lapis lazuli and red coral which give way to stones gradually increasing in height. These stones alongside silver, fossilized ivory, jet, wood, and several kinds of turquoise, are then repeated across the bridge. 

The wood is most likely ironwood as it is commonly found in the deserts of the Southwest.  Charles Loloma’s use of ironwood in inlay design was innovative as it was part of a revolutionary shift in materials used in American Indian jewelry and metal work that began in the 1960s.  

Several variations of turquoise were used from solid light blue pieces to blue green pieces with red deposits to darker blue with silver webbed deposits. The inlays of turquoise with small deposits in them are quite possibly Morenci Turquoise. One of the most famous and well-known American turquoise mines is the Morenci mine in southern Arizona. This mine was a major producer of natural gemstones that were used commercially for years in predominantly Southwestern and Native American jewelry.   

Everything about this ring is outside the box while somehow, it remains classic and ready to wear on any occasion.  It is fortunate to be able to experience Loloma’s genius in such a beautiful way, and this ring’s wearer will always find themselves inspired.  

Loloma was a gifted and wildly creative jeweler with a voracious appetite for knowledge and experimentation.  He studied and experimented with a variety of forms and techniques, beginning with tufa casting and Hopi overlay before developing and mastering the colorful multi-stone Inlay style for which he is best known today.  His success as a jeweler made his previous endeavors appear quite modest. He traveled the world, exhibited in Paris, taught at the Institute of American Indian Arts, and was featured in print and on television alongside the era’s other groundbreaking Native artists. 

Loloma's influence on Southwest Indian jewelry design is unmistakable. An entire generation of Native American artists was inspired by the work of Charles Loloma (1921-1991) to create in new and innovative ways. His own creations far exceeded anything by any other artist. His work ushered in a new era in Indian jewelry.  Ironically, his initial submissions to the Gallup Inter-tribal Indian Ceremonial were rejected as not "looking Indian enough."  By 1970, his jewelry was finding a wide audience of collectors. He had acquired a large national and international audience. Interest in his jewelry has continued today even though he has been gone for three decades.  Loloma passed away in 1991, after a long and successful career making works in a variety of media. Today, he is regarded as one of the best and most influential jewelers of the twentieth century. His works continue to increase in value, visibility, and collectability.

Condition: excellent condition

Provenance: this Charles Loloma Silver and Multi-colored Stone Inlay size 5-½ Ring was purchased from Lovena Ohl in Scottsdale, Arizona, in the late 1970s through the early 1980s

Reference and Recommended Reading:  Loloma-Beauty is His Name, by Martha Hopkins Struever, 2005

Relative Links: Hopi Pueblo, jewelry, pottery, Otellie, Charles Loloma, Hopi Pueblo Artist