Earrings, Chandelier, Mother of Pearl, Hallmarked, Contemporary, 1764

EVERYDAY ELEGANCE

Frederico Jimenez has a reputation for bold Southwestern cluster work which is exemplified in these dangling earrings. Each of the floral clusters features small mother of pearl stones set in simple bezels. Dangling from the center clusters are three matching mother of pearl stones. The white stones paired with the silver give an elegant look for a classic cluster pair of earrings.

Born in 1941, jewelry artisan Federico Jimenez has long had an appreciation for Native American culture and craftsmanship. Originally from Oaxaca, Mexico, Federico came to the United States in 1967 to work and go to school, where he studied jewelry making and design. In 1970, he and his wife Ellen Belber Jimenez traveled throughout the Southwest, where they first fell in love with the Native American and southwestern aesthetic. They became connoisseurs of folk art, and amassed a collection of Native American, Latin American, and Mexican antiques, jewelry, and housewares, opening a series of galleries in southern California. Formerly a trustee of the Millicent Rogers Museum in Taos, and The Southwest Indian Museum in Los Angeles, Federico now resides in Venice, California, where his primary focus is designing his jewelry.

Federico Jiménez (1941 -; Mexican). Born in Tututepec, Mexico; lives and works in Southern California. Designer and maker of bold southwestern style jewelry; cluster work.

Mark: F J (conjoined)