Ring c. 1930

This silver ring, studded with turquoise, was made by an A'shiwi artist from Zuni Pueblo. The act of creation must have been meditative, carefully setting each stone. It's like a painter building up layers, moving from one form to the next, each gesture informing the rest. I imagine the artist, fingers stained with silver polish, meticulously placing each turquoise nugget. What were they thinking? Maybe about the earth, the sky, the connection between the two. Each stone is unique, like a brushstroke, carrying its own weight and presence. The way they're arranged—radiating out—it feels like an echo of other artists arranging forms on a flat surface. Artists, whether working with paint or stone, we're all in conversation, borrowing and building, trying to make sense of the world, one gesture at a time.