Jeweler Profile


Wil Paul Arviso

 

 

Metalsmith

Navajo

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Wil Paul Arviso is a primarily self-taught artist. His earliest memory was using a pointed stick to draw designs, patterns and stick people in the dirt. When he made a mistake, he erased the sand to start over till it looked right. When he entered kindergarten, he was introduced to the world of pencils, chalk, crayons, paints, scissors, rulers, templates and paper- a whole new world blossomed within him.

Throughout his elementary, jr. high and high school years, he found art to be his passion and favorite extra curricular activity. Being involved in sports, band and art club, he pursued the liking of Fine Art. When he entered college, he was indecisive on what to major in. He had the interest in Fine Arts, Metallurgy/ Welding Technology, Technical Drafting and Pre-Architect. Not wanting to miss out on any, He took classes in every subject knowing that this will not lead to any degree but would link him into a whole new created world of his own. It was Metallurgy and Welding Technology that caught his fancy and won him over.

He discovered working with metal had unlimited potentials where he could unload his artistic passion the desire to create some of the ideas that were bottled up inside him. He excelled to the level of receiving his A.W.S. Arc Welding Certification from Central Arizona College and transferred to Arizona State University. It was there that he took a Fine Art class in Jewelry 101. Never having any experience in the silversmithing world, It was love at first sight. Going on three years of college and far from a degree, this was what he wanted to pursue. Knowing this would take many years in the making to become a qualified jeweler, he stood on the second story building of the Student Memorial Building looking at the thousands of students walking the A.S.U. campus like ants, he thought to him self, do I stay here and just be a number or shall I chance it and live my dream.

Coming home to the reservation that Thanksgiving, he had the chance to see an artist working in transparent watercolors and he was an award winner. Something clicked inside him, this was something he admired and knew he could do. After asking all the questions, getting supply list and techniques needed for this new medium, he went back to Phoenix that weekend and attended a pow wow where he met another artist that had a painting display booth. Seeing Wil Paul's Intense interest, the artist invited him to another pow wow art show the next weekend at Scottsdale Community College. Monday morning, he stood back at the second story and gave it a long hard thought. Yes, I will chance it to live my dream and walked away from college life. With his first pay check from Wise Guys Car Wash, he went to the art supply store and bought all the tools and supplies for transparent watercolor painting. That night he stayed awake all night and painted 2 small watercolor paintings. The next day he found the other artist and set out his miniature paintings. Nervous and scared as heck, knowing he had walked away from college, he thought to himself. If I don't sell these, I have made the biggest mistakes of my life. To his surprised, everyone admired his artistic work and he sold out, selling one for $10.00 & the other for $20.00. That was a sign of success, he never looked back. He worked during the day and painted at night It was also a time that his older brother and renowned jewelry Paul Arviso Jr. asked him if he wanted to learn how to make story teller jewelry. Wil Paul jumped at the opportunity and received his very first tool- a jewelry saw frame.

Putting his welding career on the side to pursue painting full time and learning jewelry on the side, he starting entering juried art shows across the great southwest. He won many ribbons with the high light of 1st place, Best in Class and Best in Show at the Navajo Nation Fair Fine Art Show in 1996.

Reaching his peak in painting, he decided to put forth more time and effort into his jewelry creations. It took many years of trial and error to come to the level where he felt comfortable enough to showcase and market his work. It is all that experience that he had in college life that Wil Paul now uses in creating his line of jewelry. From Fine Art, Technical Drafting, Blue Print Drawing, Architecture, Metallurgy and Welding Technology, he is making his way into the jewelry world. Still up and coming, Wil Paul Arviso is certainly a name to look out for in the near future.

Born in Fort Defiance on November 13, 1964
From Standing Rock , NM.
Graduated From Chinle High School in 1982
Parents Paul & Late Doris Arviso, Youngest of 9
From the To' ahani- Near the water clan & Born for the To' aheedliinii - Water flows together clan









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