Glittering World Lee A. Yazzie Raymond C. Yazzie


THE TITLE OF THE EXHIBITION IS TAKEN FROM THE NAVAJO EMERGENCE STORY, WHICH DESCRIBES A JOURNEY THROUGH PREVIOUS UNDERWORLDS AND ARRIVAL IN THE BRIGHT AND GLITTERING WORLD WHERE WE ALL RESIDE TODAY.


L 70 AMERICAN INDIAN SUMMER/FALL 2014


ee, now 68, his brother Raymond, 55,


sister Mary Marie, 71, and


many of their siblings, children and grandchildren carry on the tradition of Navajo jewelry-making


both as support for their families and as a fine art. A new exhibition, Glittering World: Navajo Jewelry of the Yazzie Family, will tell their extraordinary story, opening Nov. 13 at the National Museum of the American Indian’s George Gustav Heye Center in New York. The title of the exhibition is taken from


the Navajo emergence story, which describes a journey through previous underworlds and arrival in the bright and glittering world where we all reside today. This seemed an ap- propriate title for an exhibition of contempo- rary Navajo bling! Glittering World will provide visitors with


an overview of the history of Navajo jewelry. It will explain cultural influences as well as the impact of the trade and commercial demands of Gallup, a major center of commerce located near the Navajo, Hopi and Zuni reservations in New Mexico and Arizona, and home to the Yazzie family today. Although Lee and Raymond have achieved the greatest com-


mercial and critical success, the exhibition will include work by siblings Mary Marie, Lillie, Lola, Marie, Shirley, Cindy and Jimmy B., and handmade silver beads by nieces Sheena and Taisheena Long. “The exhibition turned out to be a re-


markable story, past to present, of Navajo jewelry through the lens of this gifted Yazzie family,” says guest curator Lois Sherr Dubin, whose relationship with the Yazzies stretches back nearly 20 years. “Despite hardship in their lives, they all


remain connected to their Navajo upbringing and a core set of common values rooted in tradition: harmony and balance, reciprocity, respect for the family and the importance of leading a life of significance and producing work of quality.” As a result, both the integrity of their work


and their keen artistic sensibility have estab- lished their reputation as esteemed jewelers in their community and, increasingly, in the broader world of art and design. Lee and Raymond Yazzie have achieved remarkable success and recognition and will be a major focus of the exhibition.


PHOTO BY DOUG MCMAINS


PHOTO BY DOUG MCMAINS


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