Antonio Pineda- The last of the great Taxco Silver makers passes on ....
December 20th, 2009 Antonio Pineda left us, but left behind an enduring legacy. At 90, he was the last of the great silver masters still producing Mexican silver jewelry in Taxco.
His work embodied a modern style different from any of his contemporaries like William Spratling or Hector Aguilar. He said, "the richness of silver is immortal. It doesn't die."
He was only 11 when he worked with William Spratling in Taxco, moving on to develop his own style in his own studio. I remember holding a pair of his modern curved cufflinks inlaid with tortoise shell in my hands. The modern playful design of his silver jewelry was unique and sensual in its feel.
The Fowler Museum at UCLA presented an exhibition of his work,
Silver Seduction: The Art of Mexican Modernist Antonio Pineda
August 24, 2008–March 15, 2009.
