Verma was born on September 11, 1949 – the third of six girls and two boys – on Third Mesa in Hotevilla, where she continues to reside with her husband, Robert Rhodes (Bob), an educator. And it is into this unique, remote, and tight knit community built atop stone mesas that emerge from the vast Arizona landscape that she continues to hold great pride over, as its people and rich culture continue to inform her life and practice.
Verma attended Hotevilla Day School, Hopi Mission School, and middle school in New Oraibi. When she reached high school, she was required to attend the Phoenix Indian High School, a boarding school created by the Federal government that was viewed by many as involving the forced assimilation of Native Americans into modern American society. It was difficult for Nequatewa: “They shipped us away. It was hard because we don’t go very many places, anyway. You could get very lonely.”
Nequatewa first started working with gold, silver, and stone at the age of 13 when she apprenticed with her uncle, Charles Loloma. She really can’t remember whether he found her or she him; but clearly, she was drawn – or called – to the work. And it was there, learning about inlay from a master, that Nequatewa began to perfect her craft – starting by simply grinding stones, soldering, etc. – that ultimately would train her to become the master jeweler, Sonwai (a name suggested to her by uncle, Charles).
A strong bond was forged between Verma and Charles – so close that the two communicated not with word but through stone. Her husband Bob says that he would watch them pass pieces back and forth, each making their contribution to the piece without a word exchanged. Nequatewa, in fact, first brough her work to market through Loloma – working with his clients, who then became her clients. She also gives a lot of credit to Lovena Ohl, Bill Faust in Scottsdale, and gallery owners Ray and Judy Dewey in Santa Fe for bringing her to the attention of buyers. But it was at the 1995 Santa Fe Indian Market that she was recognized for her own work. Submitting jewelry to be judged at the Market, Nequatewa won First Place and Best of Division in jewelry.
Known primarily for her work involving gold and stone inlay, though many of her pieces involve silver, Verma continues to work with only the finest stones, and only finishes a piece when she believes it to be ready. She is also very conscious of the need to work with only a select number of galleries. As such, it was a conscious choice “not to be everywhere.” Today, Nequatewa limits gallery representation to only one gallery per state, so to ensure a fair playing field where wholesale pricing is the same for all. Only one gallery represents her outside the United States – Funny Gallery in Osaka, Japan.
Her Jewelry
Most Hopi jewelry makers – some 100 or more – engage in a jewelry making technique called overlay, which is constructed from two layers of sterling silver. By contrast there are maybe six jewelers on Hopi who practice inlay, in which each stone is cut and fitted directly against or next to a contrasting stone and set within gold or silver. Nequatewa’s works incorporate a variety of high quality stones from around the world purchased from mines and traders or brought to her by friends: coral from the Mediterranean and the Philippines; turquoise from Lone Mountain, Landers, Nevada Blue, and Bisbee mines, lapis lazuli from Afghanistan, fossilized mastodon, mammoth, and walrus ivory; Australian opal, sugilite from South Africa’s Kalahari Desert; ebony, ironwood, vermillon from the Philippines; black and green jade, onyx, pearls, and other precious stones from Asia.
For the choice of stones and their paring and placement, Verma finds inspiration from her culture, its craft traditions, and the landscape in which her people have lived for hundreds of years. Kachinas and their teachings also influence many pieces. Inlaid pieces of stone set within a gold bracelet reminds one of the
68