Zuni (Ind. Ashiwi) are a large group of Pueblo Indians living in the southwestern United States in western New Mexico. According to the results of the 2000 census, their number is 10,000 thousand people. They speak mostly their native language, but the modern generation speaks English and Spanish. Many have higher education. Traditional crafts – silversmithing with stone processing, pottery, gardening – peach orchards.
In religious views they adhere to indigenous beliefs, which is reflected in their art. Their cosmological model is divided by color (north – yellow, south – red, west – blue, east – white, zenith – multi-colored, nadir – black). It has 9 worlds – 4 lower, 4 upper and the real one.
The peoples are divided into the raw people (gods) and the day people (people). They believe that priests are able to take any form, communicate directly with the raw people and control natural phenomena.
Jewelry is an important and very visible manifestation of Zuni culture. Zuni jewelry is an expression of the continuity of ancient cultural traditions rooted in the American Southwest.
Before the arrival of the Spaniards in the Zuni lands, jewelry was made from shells and stone; later, silver was brought to America and it harmoniously joined the process of creating jewelry both for trade and for personal tribal use.
From the late nineteenth century into the early 1940s, Native American jewelry increasingly became recognized as a significant indigenous art form. This period saw the emergence of several individuals who have since become recognized as the “Old Masters” of Zuni art.
The popularization of Zuni inlay began in the 1920s. Key artists included Teddy Wihki, Frank Wakit, Leo Poblano, Lambert Homer, Eddie Boyukoy, Dennis Edaaki, Benn and Andrea Lonjose Shirley.
They have created jewels, works of art that appear to be alive… In the past 80 years there have been few artists capable of such magic.
