Joel Hernandez
Joel Hernandez is an Indigenous artist whose work is the convergence of traditional and contemporary. Through bold color and thoughtful design, Joel makes art inspired by his tribes, the Navajo and Sicangu Lakota. From turquoise, shells, and silver to seed beads, bone beads, and brass, Joel continues the tradition of Native beadwork for the contemporary, ceremonial, and celebration.
“Dragonfly Finds Water"
In Navajo beliefs, Dragonfly helped the people locate water. It is depicted flying over a stream with flowers lining the water. In the East is the Sun depicted by the Navajo Basket and adorned with White Shell, representing Dawn and the Sacred Mountain of the East. In the other cardinal directions, are yellow, blue, and black, representing the other Sacred Mountains. In the center of the flowers are turquoise and spiny oyster beads, which are representatives of land and water. The piece is made from Size 9 tri-cut beads, fire polished beads, bone beads, Turquoise, Abalone Shell, White Shell, & Spiny Oyster Shell, backed, edged, and fringed with brain-tanned smoke deer hide and sinew.