Nathan Lovato — Kewa Silversmith
Kewa (Santo Domingo Pueblo) silversmith. Profiled in Mark Bahti’s Silver + Stone (2007).
Nathan Lovato, a Santo Domingo (Kewa) Pueblo jeweler, was profiled with his family in Mark Bahti's Silver + Stone (2007).
The Mark
Recorded mark: NL (Hougart (2022)).
From the Library: Bahti, Silver + Stone: Profiles of American Indian Jewelers (2007)
A 2007 profile, reviewed and corrected by the artists themselves before publication. Anything described as current describes 2006-2007, not today.
According to Bahti (2007, p. 102), Nathan Lovato (b. 1967) began by helping his mother, Mary C. Lovato, as a teenager, grinding stone for mosaics and drilling shell for beads; after Army service he bought his tools and went full-time in 1990, working with basic hand tools. [1]
Bahti (2007, p. 102) reported that Nathan cut all his own stones and originated a style he called "Groovey Earrings": traditional turquoise-slab earrings with a groove carved around the edge to hold a silver wire, a style Bahti notes was later widely copied. [1]
Speaking to Bahti (2007), Nathan Lovato said of those earrings:
“I sell to tourists and I sell to collectors.”
— Bahti (2007), p. 103 [1]
According to Bahti (2007, p. 103), his collector work carried both parents' influence: reversible earrings with a single stone on one side and a mosaic on the reverse, and inlaid sand-cast bracelets with stamped designs on the inside. [1]
Family in the directory: Mary Coriz Lovato · Anthony Lovato · Leo Coriz
Sources
- Bahti, Mark. Silver + Stone: Profiles of American Indian Jewelers. Tucson: Rio Nuevo Publishers, 2007. Cited by printed page. Statements describe conditions as of 2007.
- Hougart, Bille. Native American and Southwestern Silver Hallmarks, 5th ed. Atglen, PA: Schiffer Publishing, 2022. Cited for the recorded hallmark.
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