Dineh & Company empowers Indigenous artists at the heart of Santa Fe

The bright vibrant ribbon skirts, tote bags and silverwork are eye-catching as they shine through the glass door and walls of the gallery. As curious customers navigate the tables and shelves of Indigenous made art, jewelry and clothing, the gallery owners greet them.

“What’s specific about our company, Dineh & Company, is that we highlight the voice of what’s happening now with Native artwork, Native fashion and Native houseware.”

Marco Arviso and Nicholas Jackson, both Navajo, are well known for their silverwork, and are co-owners of Dineh & Company located at 66 E. San Francisco Street in Santa Fe, New Mexico. They opened the gallery on May 3, 2024. They offer paintings, soaps, clothing and highlight other jewelers’ works through their gallery. They also have multiple tribes represented throughout their shop and highlight products that are expressions of the Indigenous artists who made it.

Just outside the building is the historic Santa Fe Plaza which will soon be filled with Indigenous vendors from all over the country for the yearly Santa Fe Indian Market. During the 2024 Indian Market, the gallery will be opening space for artists to come in and they are also sponsoring an event with Jared Yazzie, founder of OXDX, called Off Market, where artists not participating in the Indian Market on the Plaza can set up and sell their art.

Photography by Leah Rose

While Arviso and Jackson run this gallery together, they each have their own separate businesses. Jackson owns The Silver Artichoke in Albuquerque and Arviso’s work can be found at multiple stores across the southwest and in Japan.

Arviso also opened his own store front, Marco Arviso Jewelry & Ke’ Collective in Window Rock, Arizona during the pandemic. At a time when the world was waking from a shutdown, Arviso was working to expand his business.

“I worked that until it grew feet. I have people who are running the store for me now and with that freedom, I was able to come to Santa Fe and partner with my good buddy, Nicholas,” he said. “It was a really great pairing that we came together, and we opened up this store here in Santa Fe.”

Arviso, originally from Black Rock, Arizona, grew up in Hunter’s Point, Arizona and participated in the Change Labs Business Incubator program where he learned the ins and outs to running his business. While his business was still thriving before the incubator, Arviso said the program gave him a different perspective and helped him slow things down, take a step back and see his business from the outside.

“I’m breaking down all of the moving parts because when you’re in your business, it’s so easy to get wrapped up into every day to day functions,” Arviso said.

The program also helped him with preventative measures. Running a business comes with little fires that can pop up here and there, he said, adding that supplies might be running low or an artist needs to be paid or an unexpected issue occurs. But through the Incubator, Arviso learned how to spot issues before they occurred and that skill helps him run his business more smoothly.

Both Arviso and Jackson acknowledge that it took many Indigenous artists and shop owners before them to pave the way for them to be where they are today, on the Plaza.

“We’re just another rung into that ladder of reaching the top for self actualizations of our artists to have their own store, their own promotions and their own culture really here, benefiting them and having their voices shared and their benefits received for what they do,” Arviso said.

While Santa Fe has a longstanding reputation as a cultural hub for Native American art, much of the business infrastructure surrounding that art is still owned or operated by non-Native individuals. This can lead to situations where Native artists and their work are showcased in ways that may not fully align with Indigenous perspectives or where the financial benefits of the art market do not fully return to Native communities. Increasing authentic Native business representation would not only ensure that Native artists have more direct control over how their work is presented and sold but also help sustain Native communities economically and culturally.

Jackson and Arviso have the same vision of giving Indigenous artists a place to display who they are. There is no mold to fit at Dineh & Company.

“I think we’re here to slowly change the narrative, how things are sold and who sells them and for how much and being respectful about it,” Jackson said of the company.

Visit Dineh & Company in downtown Santa Fe, NM or Marco Arviso Jewelry & Ke’ Collective in Window Rock, AZ

Photography by Leah Rose