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CARL
& IRENE CLARK -Navajo Jewelers
Carl
and Irene Clark are well known for the extremely fine quality and
detail that goes into their micro fine intarsia inlay jewelry. Carl
and Irene are both Navajo and were from large families. Carl was
born in Winslow, Arizona April 10, 1952 and is from the Manygoat-Redhouse
Clan and is related to Bitterwater people. Irene was born in Bird
Springs, AZ and is from the Edgewater Clan and related to Towering
People. Clans are very important to the traditional Navajo, especially
the maternal clan. Clans tell the Navajo where they come from as
far back as 900 to 1,000 years ago. Both Carl and Irene came from
families with rug weavers in them.
Carl and Irene use the water symbol as their trademark because they
are both from water clans. The “I” in the sign is for
Irene and the “C” is for Carl.
The Clarks have been making jewelry since about 1974. Carl was self-taught
in 1973 and then taught Irene in 1974. They then taught their son,
Carl Jr., their art when he was in high school and also Irene’s
brother Tom (Monk) Baldwin in 1974.
“There was no teaching handed down to us. However, I do have
a great-uncle Peshlakai Atsitty, whom was known as one of the first
silversmiths, taught by a Mexican blacksmith. We have many cousins
and nephews that are silversmiths and painters. I learned all my
smithing and inlaying techniques by trial and error without a teacher
or predecessor. Once I began to inlay, it took 2 years of progression
to perfect my micro-fine inlaying techniques. There was no category
for my type of inlay back then, so I classified it as “micro-fine
intarsia.” Carl and Irene work together to handcraft their
beautiful jewelry. They both cut, assemble and inlay the stones
and Irene hand fabricates the gold and silver. Irene does much of
the design work and Carl does the tufa stone casting. They very
often stamp the inside or the back of their jewelry and often incorporate
traditional Navajo figures such as the Yei figure.
The Clarks did not pattern themselves after any European or American
jewelers even though they found out after 5 years of creating their
jewelry that there were other micro-fine jewelry artist in the Art
nouveau style and Art Deco Era. “ We take pride in our own
original creations using our traditional reflections, for example,
Rainbow Man Yei that is in our inlay represents the “jewelry
of protection” theme. Artistically speaking, we use the inlay
as a picture and metal work as a picture frame. As of late, we developed
the micro-fine rug design and color blend (day to night) inlay techniques
to stay ahead of “copy cats” that are constantly duplicating
our techniques.”
Carl and Irene take pride in their work and it shows in the detail.
They feel that it reflects the Navajo tradition because “ We
use good feelings and make jewelry traditionally with precision
and care without rushing. Our jewelry takes much longer to make
than common piece of jewelry.”
Carl and Irene’s work has been featured in these books and
publications. The Beauty of Navajo Jewelry by Theda Bassman, 1997
The Cutting Edge by Diana Pardue, The Heard Museum 1997
Enduring Traditions by Lois and Jerry Jacka, Northland Publishing
1994
Field Guide to Southwest Indian Arts and Crafts, Random House Publishing
1998
Navajo Jewelry by Lois and Jerry Jacka, Northland Publishing 1995
Southwestern Indian Jewelry by Dexter Cirillo, Abbeville Press Publishers
1992
Indian Jewelry on the Market by Peter N. Schiffer, Schiffer Publishing
Ltd. 1996
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