Denise Wallace Tunghak Earrings with Clip Attachment

The pair of earrings is Denise Wallace's representation of a Yup'ik Tunghak Mask. Each is equipped with a clip attachment. The face is a representation of dualism.

The handmade clip on the back allows these to be worn by anyone, and the simple yet evocative design makes them wearable for any occasion. Fossilized Walrus ivory was formed into oval, masked faces. It is probable that the face represents the woman in the moon in which one woman is smiling, while the other is frowning. Understated and creative, the style and range of emotion represented in these earrings truly make them for all occasions.

Denise Hottinger was born in Seattle, Washington, in 1957. She attended the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, NM in the late 1970s. Denise, along with her late husband, Samuel Wallace, produced jewelry inspired by her Alaskan Native heritage. The couple had a studio/gallery in Santa Fe, NM for over 20 years and moved to the island of Hawaii in 1999. Their work has been the individual focus of many exhibitions, including the traveling exhibition, Arctic Transformations: The Jewelry of Denise and Samuel Wallace, organized by the Anchorage Museum of History and Art in Anchorage, Alaska.

Condition: they are in excellent condition

Provenance: the Denise Wallace Tunghak Earrings with Clip Attachment are from the collection of a Santa Fe resident

Reference: artist's website

TAGS: Southwest Indian Jewelry, Eskimo, Aleut and Chugach Indigenous Alaskan Groups, Denise Wallace