CLN Reviews: Ride Rank Silver

Millennial Style: Innovating Traditional Silverwork

Colton Anderson, 22, of Waco, TX has been in the silversmith game since meeting Nick Cunningham of Bad Bronc Studio in 2012 at the historical Fort Worth Stockyards, who along with Laddan Ledbetter (owner of Son of a Gun Silver), taught Anderson everything there is to know about the art. He hand builds pieces such as rings and buckles for his company Ride Rank Silver, while adding his own innovative spin to the traditional cowboy craft.
 

With a name like “Ride Rank Silver”, it comes as no surprise that Anderson was introduced to rodeo at a young age. Being the son of a former barrel racer and a collegiate bareback rider, he is no stranger to the sport, as he even does a little team roping, himself. Bareback horses and his silverwork are not the only things in his life that could be described as “rank”, because his image could easily fit into that category as well.

Anderson is definitely not the type of person that you can overlook in a room. Wearing all black with a sleeve of tattoos, long hair and sporting his own jewelry, his Texas swag is hard to miss. Always equipped with a felt hat and starched jeans, he describes his style influences as being somewhat retro, and I could not agree more. Style is an area that he is definitely not lacking in. His persona is effortlessly cool and becomes apparent in the music he listens to as well, as you could find him tucked away in his shop with TC Fambro and American Aquarium blasting from the speakers.
When asked if he feels like he is keeping the traditional craftsmanship of western culture alive, he gently replied with a “Yes ma’am, I would say that I am”, which goes to show that there is an undeniable chivalrous mannerism that is only found in the world of cowboys, the west, and rodeo, alongside a creative flair and entrepreneurial grind that today’s young people of the western industry seem to have, and that Anderson boldly represents.

To see view or purchase Anderson’s work, visit www.mkt.com/ride-rank-silver.