Leo coriz biography

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I don’t just make them to make them. Please look closely at the pictures as they are an important part of our description and are hereby incorporated into the description, specifically with regards to condition.

Leo Coriz (1913-1997)

Leo Coriz (1913-1997) was a master jeweler from Kewa Pueblo (Santo Domingo Pueblo) .

It features a handmade silver chain with hand stamped links, and a very nice turquoise and coral Jocla dangle. The total weight for this item is 101.2 grams.
CONDITION: Good for its age, normal wear expected. I started in the late ‘50s, in black, white and orange.” Mary then began to add more contemporary touches, such as putting in silver to her work and adding more colors.

“I came up with the shell mosaic work myself. Her sons, Anthony Lovato and Isaac Coriz, as well as her grandsons, Joel Pajarito and Cordell Pajarito, are all accomplished jewelry makers.

Mary Lovato passed away in 2024. She leaves behind a extraordinary legacy, and we will miss her greatly.

Super Handmade Necklace By Leo Coriz

Offered here for your consideration is a super handmade necklace by Leo Coriz. This necklace features a lidded drum style pendant with channel inlays of turquoise, coral, onyx, and mother of pearl resting in smooth silver settings.

“My mother and mostly my father were my teachers. He was liked by everyone and respected for his knowledge and skills. The Jocla measures 3 1/2 inches long. These lovely pieces are a blend of the contemporary and traditional styles, but Mary strove to maintain tradition above all. She was the third generation from the pueblo of Santa Domingo. He felt this retained his Pueblo Indian heritage at the same time that he was serving his country.

Picture courtesy of Anthony Lovato and Gregory Schaaf

Reference: American Indian Jewelry I 1,200 Artist Biographies by Gregory and Angie Schaaf.

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Pendants cut from these glossy shells in various forms were overlaid with designs in abalone, jet, and turquoise.

Mary Coriz Lovato, daughter of Santiago Leo Coriz, was born to the Corn Clan in 1936.

Active since the 1930s. Although Mary reintroduced stone-in-shell mosaics during the 1950s, the Kewa people have crafted turquoise and shell heishi beads for at least a thousand years.

“We have kept traditional jewelry going here because it is worn for our dances,” said Mary, who lived at her Santo Domingo Pueblo home between Santa Fe and Albuquerque.

I was brought up very traditional,” she recalled. Mary Lovato was known for her unique mosaic inlay, shellwork, cast, and stamp-work jewelry. (Santiago) Leo Coriz (1913 or 1914 -1997; Kewa). After it’s done, I say, ‘Whoever it may go to, may they have strength, may they have a good, happy life.’ So that is the way I do my work.”

Mary Lovato’s work is so phenomenal that many say it has become a standard by which shell inlaid jewelry is measured.