Andy Cadman — Navajo Silversmith

Andy Cadman — Navajo Silversmith

Andy Cadman represents the high-art end of the Navajo silversmithing spectrum. His cuffs are not simply jewelry — they are executed statements of what the tradition can achieve when skill, patience, and exceptional stone combine in a single piece. Nine rows of stampwork. High-relief repousse across the full width of a band. Number 8 and Black Spiderweb Kingman turquoise chosen stone by stone. The result is work that belongs in collections alongside the finest mid-century Navajo silversmithing.

About the Artist

Andy Cadman is a Diné (Navajo) silversmith known for producing technically demanding, large-format cuffs that demonstrate command of virtually every classical Navajo silversmithing technique simultaneously. He has a long presence in the serious collector market and is recognized by dealers and buyers who follow the finest contemporary Navajo work. His pieces appear in significant private collections and are sought after at shows throughout the American West.

Stylistic Hallmarks

  • Multi-row stampwork — Where most silversmiths stamp one or two decorative rows, Cadman stamps seven, eight, or nine. Each row is a separate stampwork pattern, individually applied and precisely spaced. The resulting surface depth has no equivalent in machine-made jewelry.
  • High-relief repousse — Cadman's repousse work is formed with force and precision, creating dimensional elements that rise clearly off the surface of the band. The contrast between the recessed stamped fields and the raised repousse forms creates a visual complexity that rewards close examination.
  • Bold overlay — Cut-out silver overlay elements — applied over the stamped ground — add another layer of dimensionality to his compositions. The overlay, the repousse, and the stampwork operate at three distinct depths in a single piece.
  • Extra-wide bands — Cadman needs the surface area. His designs require width to deploy all their elements without crowding. His extra-wide cuffs give his multi-row stampwork and repousse room to breathe and read clearly.
  • Deeply oxidized finish — A rich oxidized patina fills the recesses, making every stamped line and repousse edge read with maximum contrast against the bright raised surfaces.

Stones and Materials

  • Number 8 turquoise — From Nevada's Number 8 Mine, prized for its vivid blue-green color and distinctive golden-to-orange spiderweb matrix. Cadman's #8 cuff features a large oval specimen — over two centimeters at its widest — set amid nine rows of stampwork that honor the stone's complexity with equivalent silverwork complexity.
  • Black Spiderweb Kingman — From Arizona's Kingman Mine, the black spiderweb variety features dark matrix that creates one of the most dramatic turquoise appearances in American jewelry. Cadman sets it in a deep rope bezel with five rows of stampwork and full oxidized finish — the dark stone, the dark recesses, and the bright raised silver creating a graphic intensity that is uniquely his.

All metalwork in heavily gauged oxidized sterling silver.

Collector Relevance

Andy Cadman pieces are rare opportunities. The combination of technical ambition, stone quality, and format scale means that a finished Cadman cuff represents a significant investment of time that few silversmiths make. When one comes to market it represents genuine scarcity — not manufactured scarcity, but the natural scarcity of pieces that take a long time to make well. Collectors who understand the Navajo silversmithing tradition recognize Cadman's work immediately and value it accordingly.

Andy Cadman at Turquoise Mustang

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