Quinton Antone, Silversmith. Tucson, AZ | MA 2020
Quinton Antone (Tohono O’odham Nation/Kiowa) is a silversmith who grew up watching his uncle Duke Sine (Apache) create intricate paintings. He later learned techniques such as overlay, sawing, and polishing from Tohono O’odham silversmiths James Fedenheim and Rick Manuel. These teachers encouraged him to continue, giving him permission to use their signature cactus motifs and other O’odham designs. Quinton’s work incorporates desert landscapes and animals, including turtles, horned toads, and lizards and communicates the relationship between the O’odham and the land and everything that inhabits it. “In our cosmology, everything has a spirit–the natural features of our landscape and all the animals that inhabit it have a place in maintaining the balance of the universe,” he says. He worked with Bruce Donahue from the Chukut Kuk District of the Tohono O’odham Nation, to pass on the form.
“My mentors encouraged me to use the cactus because it’s a symbol of being O’otham, and of being here as stewards of the Southwest. The saguaro is now an element in my work. I also incorporate different techniques and have created my own style.
The cactus motif, the desert landscape, the desert animals are all a representation of this region. We’ve been residents for a long time, one of the first residents of the Sonoran Desert. I grew up living on the reservation with my family and was taught about how we relate and connect to the land.
For me (creating jewelry), it’s not necessarily for financial gain, it’s more of a statement. It’s about creating something that is both wearable and a reflection of this land, where we come from.
I think that it’s my spiritual duty to be able to represent my people from generations before me and to generations ahead of me.
This silverwork is going to last for a long time, if people take care of it can last forever. People can use it as an heirloom to pass it on, each piece has a story to it, and it represents our people, the Tohono O’odham people here in Southern Arizona. ” —Quinton Antone
