Cochiti Pueblo
Benson Ration is a full blooded Native American who
was born in 1953 into the Navajo Nation.
He comes from a long line of silversmiths. His Father, John Benson,
taught him all the fundamentals of silversmithing just like his father
before him. Benson has been working with jewelry since the age of 13.
He helped his father with his jewelry and watched with a careful eye
so that someday he would be able to create his own style of jewelry.
Benson has developed a unique style of jewelry, which includes necklaces,
bolo ties, and earrings. He fashions traditional kachina dancers from
raw silver with a coping saw.
He draws all of his designs on the metal freehand, no stencils involved.
The unique aspect of his jewelry is that you have several pieces within
the necklace for example, you can remove certain parts of the necklace
and it becomes a pendant, or it becomes either a lapel pin, or other
pieces of jewelry, which you can fashion into whatever you would like
to wear.
Benson also paints with acrylics and oil paints. His trademark is the
fancy kachinas which he constructs.
Benson signs his jewelry as: B.R. followed by a hoof print to denote
his clan origin.
Benson is related to the following artists: Bennie Ration (brother)
and Nelson Morgan (brother-in-law).
Awards:
-1996 Eighth Northern Art Show 1st Place
-1996 Flagstaff Indian Market 1st Place
-1996 Flagstaff Indian Market 3rd Place