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Eric first began learning the art of jeweling at 10 years of age from his grandfather Joseph Cifani and continues working on the same classic hand tools in the Cifani family for 70 years. He inherited his grandfather's tools in middle school and took jewelry courses throughout all years of High School and college. His work as an ethnobotanical field collector on two dozen professional multidisciplinary expeditions, working closely with indigenous groups from the Upper Amazon Basin, across Mexico and the Southwestern United States cultivated his deep passion for exploring the beauty and mysteries of our natural world in their native environments and his unwavering commitment to wilderness conservation. Eric’s artistic philosophy is that nature is the creator. It is his role to seek, find, see, reveal, and arrange each piece in the spirit of Mother Earth’s unique creations. Manifesting one-of-a-kind, 100% natural, artist-mined, and handcrafted heirloom jewelry. Over his lifetime Eric’s work has earned several awards, been internationally published and also been exhibited in several museums including the Smithsonian American Art Museum | Renwick Gallery, American Museum of Natural History | Halls of Gems & Minerals, Burning Man, Bellevue Arts Museum, Petaluma Arts Center, Sierra Arts Foundation. Eric is the proprietor of Cifani Gem, a family jeweler who offers their work and also teaches classes on jeweling from mine to finished jewelry. His creative process is well documented on social media to help and inspire other artists. Eric is a volunteer supervisor for the Southern Nevada Gem & Mineral Society (SNGMS) and member of the Goodsprings Historical Society. Last but not least Eric and his partners own and operate Columbia 23 Mine. They guide visiting diggers on their 20-acre claim to mine their own gemstones and even learn to make custom jewelry from their findings just 30 miles south of Las Vegas. #columbia23mine