Born and raised in New Mexico, Juan is a transplant to the Twin Cities. He is a member of the Isleta Pueblo tribe. He holds a BA in museum studies from the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, N.M. Throughout his 15-plus year career in the arts, he has immersed himself in Native American art with an emphasis on Southwest jewelry and traditional Pueblo pottery. Juan prides himself on the relationships he has developed with artists and art professionals in his communities. He spent seven years at the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center in Albuquerque, where he worked as an art purchaser and in the education department. More recently he held a position as an art storage technician at Mia, where he developed a great relationship with staff and a familiarity with objects in the collection.