You could call Cynthia Downs-Apodaca a stone whisperer, and in many regards she is. Her jewelry designs all start from first listening to the story each stone has to tell then allowing that to guide her design. Cynthia, however, calls herself a metalsmith, more so than a jeweler or stone whisperer. But it was a fascination with the natural beauty of stones that attracted her to the art of jewelry making.
That fascination has evolved into a deep passion for storytelling through stones and metalwork. Inspired by nature’s patterns and textures, Cynthia crafts intricate pieces that reflect the beauty of tidal pools, desert landscapes and the natural world.
“To me, it’s all about nature and trying to make that, if you can, more beautiful than it already is,” she said.
Though Cynthia finds some magnificent and rare stones, like the azurite “blueberry” geodes she recently procured, she still manages to enhance their natural beauty with her meticulous metalwork and the design she architects around the stone.
In this interview, she discusses her artistic path, inspirations, and the rewarding connections her work fosters.
Q&A with Cynthia:
When did you know art was your calling?
Before, when I was an administrator, I loved to go into galleries on the weekends. It never even occurred to me that I wanted to be a metalsmith or do anything in jewelry. I would look at pieces and maybe not understand them, but then read the story about them and it really made sense to me. It was fun to see their vision. So, now I try to do the same thing with my work––tell a little story with each piece that I have.
It’s hard to call myself a jeweler. I feel more like a metalsmith person because I love to build pieces. It’s a very spontaneous process of looking at a stone and wanting the stone to tell a story then building something around that. I work with silver and gold, and my favorite thing in the world is stones––it’s the whole reason I do anything in this field.
How has your creative journey evolved?
I took classes at Mass College of Art and Design, and it was the best thing I ever did. It was like Alice going through the looking glass. I just felt like I entered this other world. As I learned different techniques, I realized that I was hooked.
The first thing I brought in as a project was this giant sliced agate that I wanted to make into a belt. They basically said to me, ‘You’re very ambitious’. But I ended up doing it. They were quite surprised.
For me, it’s about the natural stones and just bringing out the natural beauty. It’s more about glorifying it. To me, it’s all about nature and trying to make that, if you can, more beautiful than it already is.
How did you develop your unique style?
When I came out here [Arizona], I went on lots of hikes and I was looking at tree roots and driftwood, and I realized that beaches and deserts had lots in common––they look the same with erosion from the wind and the rain. From that was born my first project, which I call my “tidal pools”. It was really about sand ripples and catching the stones, and seeing the treasures that the tide would bring in. When I would be hiking in the desert and I’d go into these little dry washes, I’d see the same exact patterns, and they would catch the stones in a similar way. I thought it was a beautiful way to take stones and flow them across your wrist or put them around your chest and just have a really pretty look.
What do you love most about the creative process?
What I love most is that I feel guided. I don’t know how to say it, but I’ll pick up a stone and I’ll look at it, and it starts talking to me and I will build something around it. It feels like the grace of God. I don’t know what it is, but whatever it is, it definitely commands me to do designs. People say, ‘How do you think of those things?’. I have no idea. It’s like the spirit catches me and I just let it go.
What is the most rewarding aspect of what you do?
Believe it or not, selling it is rewarding because many times when you’re sitting for days and days in your studio and you’re working on things, you sometimes lose perspective. Then when you go back out and you watch people’s reactions to your jewelry and they actually want to buy it, to me, that’s the ultimate compliment. I feel like those people can relate to exactly what I’m trying to say with that piece of jewelry.
How do you keep yourself challenged?
I will see things and try to translate them in my own way. For instance, on my hikes, I would look at a cactus skeleton––a prickly pear skeleton as it’s dying. To me, it’s just as beautiful in its death and the way it reveals itself. What I saw basically with the prickly pear was a lacy exterior or interior, and it reminded me of weaving. I thought it would be a great way to display a stone. So, I practiced weaving. I bought books. I took a weekend course. I basically figured out my own method of weaving that worked as far as keeping my work saleable and wearable.
One of the first things they taught us was, you may have a beautiful piece, but if it falls apart, it’s not worth it to get it back. So I made very sure about how I was weaving. It took some research, but it was a lot of fun learning it in the process.
What keeps you coming back to the Celebration of Fine Art?
What I enjoy most about being here is definitely connecting with the people. I love the artists and I love the customers. It’s a great opportunity to talk about my work and hopefully have people connect with it. When they do, it makes me happy. It’s a wonderful place to be for 10 weeks. I just really enjoy being here for that period of time, and it gives people a chance to come back and see you again and again.
