Ernest & Veronica Benally

Ernest has been making jewelry for more than 35 years, introduced to making jewelry while working for Gilbert Ortega in the ’70s as a summer part-time job. He got a job at a local jewelry manufacturer where he excelled in silversmithing and inlaying/lapidary arts. He began making one-of-a-kind designs and began selling to local stores and entering inter-tribal competitions, where he has won several awards and earned multiple commissions.

Veronica began making jewelry more than 20 years ago, first introduced to her by aunts and uncles. She learned from Douglas Etsitty and then her husband Ernest. She has won best-of-show at the Museum of Man and at PIAM, and awards from the University of San Diego, Eiteljog Museum in Indianapolis, IN, and the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture in Santa Fe, NM.