Born on the Hopi Reservation's Third Mesa in Arizona, Charles Loloma was a celebrated jewelry designer and an innovator of Native American jewelry. "Loloma" means beauty in the Hopi language, and Loloma certainly lived up to this name through his role as a lifelong artist and jeweler. In high school, Loloma worked with artist Fred Kabotie and was selected by Kabotie to help create reproductions of Awatovi murals for the Museum of Modern Art's 1941 exhibition, Indian Art of the United States. After serving in the US Army during World War II, Loloma used the GI Bill to attend Alfred University's School for American Craftsmen.
Though he trained as a ceramicist, Loloma would find his calling in jewelry design. He became known for his use of materials not typically associated with Native American jewelry, such as sugilite, lapis lazuli, ivory, gold, pearls, diamonds, and exotic woods. Because his works were a far cry from the more traditional silver and turquoise, Loloma was harshly criticized for creating jewelry that was not "Native enough."
Though he openly embraced non-traditional techniques and materials, Loloma still incorporated Hopi elements into his work, especially the silversmithing process of tufa-casting. In the 1950s, Frank Lloyd Wright's wife, Olgivanna, commissioned Loloma to make two tufa-cast silver bracelets for her. A mistake in the casting – and Olgivanna's insistence that the work need not be recast – led to Loloma's signature placement of precious stones inlaid below silver.
Loloma became famed in his lifetime for his vibrant sculptural designs, and was commissioned to create pieces for royalty including the Queen of Denmark. Prior to his death in 1991, Loloma told his biographer Martha Hopkins Streuver: "What I'd like to be known for is beauty."
I felt a strong kinship to stones, not just the precious and semi-precious stones I use in my jewelry, but the humble stones I pick up at random while on a hike through the hills or a walk along the beach. I feel the stone and think, not to conquer it, but to help it express itself.
Charles Loloma
Charles Loloma 1921–1991
Charles Loloma was a pioneering Native American jewelry artist from the Hopi tribe, known for revolutionizing Native American jewelry design by blending traditional Hopi motifs with modern, innovative techniques. Born in Hotevilla, Arizona, on Third Mesa of the Hopi Reservation, Loloma was raised in a culturally rich environment, where Hopi traditions and art played a central role. After attending Phoenix Indian School, Loloma served in the U.S. Army during World War II. Upon his return, he studied ceramics at the School for American Craftsmen at Alfred University in New York. It was during this time that he began experimenting with jewelry, a medium that would define his career.
Loloma’s jewelry stood out for its bold departure from traditional Native American silversmithing. While many Native American jewelers adhered to established forms and designs, Loloma introduced innovative materials, colors, and techniques. He utilized materials such as turquoise, lapis lazuli, coral, malachite, ironwood, and fossilized ivory, and combined them in intricate inlays. One of his signature techniques was "channel inlay," where he precisely set stones into narrow channels of gold or silver, creating vibrant, mosaic-like patterns. Loloma also frequently used non-traditional materials like gold, which was uncommon in Native American jewelry at the time. Inspired by the landscapes and cultural heritage of his Hopi background, Loloma’s designs often reflected the textures and colors of the Southwestern desert. His pieces were deeply symbolic, incorporating elements of Hopi culture, such as katsina figures and motifs representing the land, sky, and Hopi spirituality. His jewelry was not only wearable art but also a means of expressing identity and narrative.
Throughout his career, Loloma’s work attracted widespread acclaim and elevated Native American jewelry to a level of artistry previously unseen. His pieces were exhibited in prestigious venues such as the Museum of Modern Art in New York and collected by notable figures, including Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis and Georgia O’Keeffe. His influence on contemporary jewelry was profound, and he helped reshape perceptions of Native American art by moving beyond the boundaries of traditional craft. Loloma also dedicated himself to education, teaching for several years at the University of Arizona Tucson, at Arizona State University Tempe, and summer extension courses in Sedona. Additionally, he co-founded the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, New Mexico in 1962, where he taught and helped inspire new generations of Native American artists. His work earned him numerous accolades, including the title of "Living Treasure" by the State of Arizona and several awards from the Heard Museum and the Indian Arts and Crafts Association.
Auction Results Charles Loloma
