The couple Carl and Irene Clark are two famous Navajo artists who are from the Manygoat-Redhouse clan. Carl came from a family of silversmiths and painters and is a natural born artist. In fact, his great-uncle Peshlakai Atsitty was among the original silversmiths. Carl is a self-thought artist who later passed his skills on to his wife, Irene. Their remarkable talent in handcrafting jewelry has earned them a lot of awards and recognition from the Native American community. Their unique styles in silversmithing and designing are some of the reasons why many of their pieces have become valuable to collectors.

                       

Thinking of adding Carl and Irene Clark jewelry to your collection? Here are some interesting facts about the Clarks that you should know.

1) Carl Clark is credited for developing micro-fine intarsia, which is an inlay technique. He      mastered this style and applied it to many of his projects since the 1970s. It has                  become one of the Clarks' contributions to the art of jewelry making.

2) Micro-fine intarsia inlay technique involves using different colors of precious stones            and cutting them into tiny pieces. The Navajo artists assemble and inlay the stones by        hand, incorporating color blending techniques. They always use two types of natural          stones in one jewelry piece. Some of the stones they use apart from turquoise are              lapis,sugilite, and coral.

3) Carl and Irene Clark work together to complete each piece of jewelry. Because their          designs are intricate and involve thousands of tiny stones, they have to be meticulous        and highly attentive to details. It takes hours to cut the stones equally, assemble them,      add bezels, and finish every piece.

4) Most of their work depicts Navajo culture and heritage, some of them with images of          Man Yei and the Monument Valley. Since they are also from the clan of rug weavers,          they likewise depict rugs in their pieces.

5) Carl Clark is also skilled in tufa stone casting. Some of his pieces have stamps on the        inside or on the back.

6) Carl and Irene Clark’s jewelry are uniquely beautiful. The good news is that they are          not hard to find. Authorized partner retailers sell their work online.