Jesse Monongye

Based in Scottsdale, Arizona, Jesse Monongye is a Navajo-Hopi jeweler. The son of Hopi jewelry maker Preston Monongye, he was raised by a family in the Navajo community of Two Gray Hills, New Mexico, a noted center for rug-making. He apprenticed and worked with his father for four years before opening his own studio. Monongye cites his blended cultural background, traditional Navajo philosophies of beauty and discipline, and a fascination with the night sky and natural world as major influences. His has used silver, turquoise, coral and other precious and semi-precious materials to create technically demanding intricate inlaid patterns often featuring combinations of traditional stylized motifs and colorful... more.