Organic, raw, earthy. These are the words local Cortez artist Ann Goodall uses to describe her contemporary cowgirl jewelry.
The artist will showcasing her silver pendants, leather cuffs and earrings all made to capture the "perfection of imperfection" at a reception in Mancos this week at the Goodnight Trail Gallery of Western Art.
Goodall returned to the art world three years ago after seeing the chunky beaded jewelry at the national ranch rodeo in Nevada inspired her to get back into art.
From the chunky necklaces, her work evolved to include high-quality turquoise and hand-molded silver clay pendants and beads. Molding the clay drew on her prior experience from college in Florida, where she had majored in art, mainly sculpting and painting.
After she moved to Colorado about 20 years ago, she left art to become a massage therapist. Now she lives on a ranch in the Cortez area with her family and the ranch life and style has become part of her identity.
"It kind of oozes into your pores," she said.
Goodall spent two years perfecting her jewelry and building clientele before she left massage therapy to pursue art fulltime.
She used Etsy, an online marketplace for handmade work, to both build her clientele and discover new ideas to try.
"Everything is in evolution," she said.
Through the Internet, she met a vendor interested in selling her work at reining and cutting competitions. She started to meet a demand for custom necklaces and bracelets with individual brands from specific ranches.
The silver she uses to make the custom necklaces forms a clay that can be rolled very thin and then stamped and shaped before it is placed in a kiln to be fired or hardened. Then Goodall oxydizes the silver to turn it black and sands it bring out a shine while leaving the black oxydation in the creases.
"Black gives it depth and dimension," she said.
The Goodnight Trail Gallery will display a case of Goodall's art for the foreseeable future. The gallery will be thinning its selection of traditional Navajo jewelry to add Goodall's work and a different flavor to gallery.
Jamie Bade, one of the owners of the gallery, thought Goodall's trendy, fun, bright, work would have a wide appeal. Bade also appreciates that Goodall is able to bring her unique style to the current trends.
"She's this perpetual student, she is always growing and changing, which I love about her," Bade said.
Goodall's show is also February's Mancos Cash Mob, a monthly event where everyone is encouraged to spend at least $20 at a business selected by the Mancos Chamber of Commerce.
