ABOUT THE ARTIST:
Master mosaic Zuni artist Quintin Quam Sr. is from the Zuni Pueblo, but now calls Albuquerque his home. Having learned the art of mosaic back in 1981 by well known Zuni artisans "Sammy & Ester Guardian" is who Quintin learned the "Art of Zuni Mosaic" from.. This husband & wife team took Quintin under their wing & taught the younger artist the ropes of mosaic art.

A previous painter, Quintin traded out the tubes of color, brushes & canvas, to now working with our earth's naturally produced colors for his subjects... He continues to paint, but these days it's done in a stone/shell/metal art form. Quintin's picturesque pieces are made where he cuts each one of these tiny, tiny colorful stones (or shell) by hand & then intricately laying them 'flush' into the sterling that actually look like a painted picture! All the feather detailing & everything else to create a more ‘realistic image’, is further created by the hands of Quintin.

His detailed workmanship is very impressive & makes it look all to easy to do, but when the art of mosaic is done on this tiny of a scale, it takes extreme skill & is very time consuming art form that doesn't happen overnight, nor in a matter of weeks,but literally takes years to do this type of work with extreme precision!

Quintin now has become a highly reputable artist that is very much sought after for his beautiful mosaic inlay work & whose work is in high demand.
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DESCRIPTION:
For the Zuni,Owls are the Guardians of the night & protectors of the village.Their sounds alert people to the coming of enemies & danger.

These ‘pieces of art’ are made by Quentin,who cuts each of these tiny,tiny stones (or shell) all by hand & then mosaic inlays each within the sterling,giving you this very picturesque piece of art in metal form.The detail is impressive & remarkable & how he makes these with such accuracy, should give true appreciation to this artist!!! When mosaic is done on this tiny of a scale takes skill & is very time consuming & extremely challenging to work with this small of stone..

Glaring for miles out in the distance,sits the Snow Owl who is finely detailed & is made of shimmery opalescent Mother of Pearl & is given all minuscule naturalistic detailed markings known to the Snow Owl! There are winged layers of shimmery pearly pinks & greens in the mother of pearl that are seen as they move in the light,black spotted detailing & dark black eyes that Quentin took time to chisel into the shell for a more realistic appearance..

Because of the size that Quentin chose to make the Owl,it is inlaid in a rounded rectangular medallion shape to ensure they show nicely. Fine cuts of Lapis show at both top & bottom,along with marquise cuts of turquoise that emulate a floral design that sits behind this mighty bird! Hand stamping follows the shape of the medallion.

These are a mirrored earring,so there is an actual right & left,so they're meant to be worn going 'toward' the face(as shown in photos)

Because of having to brighten up the photos,does take away the ability to seethe Mother of Pearl..So please be aware of this.Also,I have the matching Snow Owl ring that can be found in my ring listings (see last photo)