Biography 

John Bekarian 

John Bekarian was born in Istanbul, Turkey in 1963.  He was raised in an Apostolic Christian family and has one brother.   In his homeland of Turkey, families that are not financially well off must send their children into the world to learn a trade after the fifth grade of education.  As John’s family was not poor, they still could only afford to send their older son for higher education.  At age 10, John was placed with a family friend to learn the trade of a diamond setter.  John immediately excelled in this skill, and at the age of 16, he received the Master Diamond Setter and Jewelry Designer of the Year Award in Istanbul.

In 1979, John’s teacher and boss moved to the United States.  After eight applications for a visa to leave the country, John was finally successful in 1985, at which time he immigrated to the United States.  In 1988, John established Majestic Art Jewelry, a jewelry designing and manufacturing company. In 1990, he received permission from the U. S. government to stay in the country and to continue to work and develop his business.  John received his United States citizenship in July, 2001. 

Today, Majestic Art Jewelry has over 2000 designs.  He specializes in diamond and gemstone combinations set in gold and platinum.  His designs include rings, earrings, bracelets, brooches, men’s jewelry, and even diamond sunglasses.  John’s specialty, as well as his love, is to do custom “one of a kind” designs for his customers.  In July, 2002, John received the Independent Jeweler Organization’s VIP Vendor of the Year Award – an honor voted on and given to the outstanding supplier of this 900 member organization. 

John currently lives in California where he is president of Majestic Art Jewelry.  He is an active member of St. Peter’s Apostolic Armenian Christian Church.  He enjoys deep sea fishing, gourmet cooking, dancing, and running marathons.