Beadwork Progression

physically and mentally, quilting has acted as an art that transcends racial barriers and to bring

Bethan Gray is an award winning Welsh designer that has an unusual but impressive family origin. Her ancestors originate from an ancient Rajasthani clan that spent many hundreds of years journeying across Arabia and Persia before choosing to remain in the Celtic region of Wales. This very heritage wove its way into being some of Bethan Grays’s main influences and inspirations, which pull ideas shown within craft traditions of both the East and West. These influences are reflected in Gray’s style, showing a clear passion of detail, tactile textures, and extravagant materials such as rare stones, wood, marble and hand-tooled leather. Complex but complementary patterns of dark and light, texture and clear attention shown to the detail that defines her highly unique style. Even while using blacks and whites, Gray is also not afraid

Ceramics class is a great place to relax in the midst of a long and tiring school day, and throughout this class my peers and I have learned and grew as artists while learning about what it takes to became better at pottery. A major example of this growth occurred as a result of the face jug assignment. After watching a documentary on the significance these jugs have had in American history, and the significance these artifacts had to do with the people who made them, we began. Through this assignment I learned more about African American origins, how the people were able to keep a minute part of themselves after being brought to a new land, and the change in meaning of the face jugs; I found it difficult to believe that such a simple thing

Joel Iskowitz is a designer, whose work has been featured on United States currency to Congressional Gold Medals. From his presentation, I gained a new appreciation for the importance of details.

The horses jump around screaming, the bulls snorting, and time for the rodeo to start. Before the bareback rider gets on his horse I notice his belt, fabricated with beautiful authentic leather and his last name on the back made of beads, this belt caught my eye because the beads were bright, and vibrant. I have been looking for this perfect beaded belt for two years. Nevertheless, I did not want to spend the three-hundred dollars to have someone else make one for me, so I decided I would wait until my senior year to make this my senior project, and here I stand today.

The need to create and construct goes far beyond what one can imagine. It is in human nature to be curious and to develop or create based on the observations of the world around us. In fact, shapes and patterns emerge in nature organically (Rudman 2007). Native Americans development of geometric shapes is still a mystery to many. Yet, by analyzing the world around us and trying to create based on observations and creativity leads into our desire to mimic nature itself. Designs and patterns on everyday life items were utilized by Native

Her current studio practice focuses on works that explore her interests in mark making as it relates to a pattern, drawing and personal expression. Stinson works ranges from the functional to sculptural. Each format is a way for her to engage the viewer on different and multiple levels. Stinson also utilizes multiple methods of making, throwing, slip casting, and press molding, to attain a variety of effects and unique characteristics in the finished work. These process and surfaces help to develop the underlining content in the finished pieces.

For my senior project I replicated a quilt from the 1930s. The pattern I chose is one that has been recreated by several family members My second great maternal grandmother Cordelia first made this quilt for my grandmother as a wedding gift. A few years ago, my grandmother, my mother, and her sisters got together and recreated the quilt and named it ‘Cordelia’. I have always been drawn to the Depression era and this quilt will hold an important spot in my heart because of the meaning of the pattern and of the fabrics. My grandma and my mom gave me their leftover fabric and bought me some new pieces, and there are even some original fabric from the 1930s.

Native American art history has been developing for over thousands of years. The arts have a vast deep connection with spirituality and the Earth. It’s a way of life for almost all Native Americans and can be traced back to cave paintings and stonework. Each piece of art is designed to reveal the complexity of the diverse tribes. One of the most popular forms of art is jewelry; it’s heavy in symbolism which makes is more easily accepted. Native Americans are better known for their skills in carving intricate patterns and designs. Often, their inspiration will actually come from the natural world surrounding them. The arts, to the Native Americans, hold more symbolism to them than a lot of the other aspects their culture holds and is a part of.

Culturally, the symbolism of a quilt is understood to be an heirloom piece that is closely guarded and highly prized. The ownership of the quilt and the generational lines it passes down is known before the piecing is begun. Stitching the pieces together is done by groups of women. The tiny bits of cloth each carry a memory, one from grandpa's shirt, one square from an aunt's Christmas dress, a piece from the flannel nightgown a mother wore as she pulled her sick child close to her bosom. The pieces are carefully and artistically pieced together into a collage of

Ever since I was little, I loved to create. Whether I was designing a new railroad track for my toy trains or building houses out of popsicle sticks, I always wanted to make new things with different materials. One of these materials included Perler Beads. Yes, I am talking about the little, colorful plastic beads that one irons to solidify. When I was little I was obsessed with making the 2-D dogs or flowers on the little shaped trays. I would spend hours a day making things that I could play with. As I got older I realized that there was more to the Perler Bead world than 2-D objects. I moved away from the safety of the little trays that I had known all of my life and into the unknown of the clear, square trays that held endless possibilities.

My line of sight is one that sees “outside the box.” The natives living on the island Kaho’olawe located off the coast of Maui, Hawaii are often considered dangerous and uncollaborative; however, the dignified qualities of their colorful culture and spirited rituals were meticulously captured by the majestic, multicolored tiki attached to the chain. Being exposed to other cultures has brought out in me an increased appreciation for the distinctive qualities contained in each and every

With the elimination of physical barriers, the artwork is free in every aspect allowing people to come in contact with it and obtain their own interpretation and experience. I personally felt astonished to see and touch a colorful masterpiece because usually the person is only the observer, but I like that in this case the artist valued my eyes as much as my body to grasp his idea of life emerging from the boa serpent. I also love his crochet style to form all of his works because he used a basic handicraft and made distinctive colorful patterns to show that something so simple can become very complex and important and act as the building block of life. Thus, Neto’s one-of-a-kind recreation of how life started in his point of a view with an enthralling, colorful crochet style has marked in me the notion that life is love, the name Neto cleverly chose to name one of his pieces, no matter what form life takes its creation and beginning is beautiful and we should be grateful for

Gloria has been sewing since the sixth grade. She began sewing by making her outfits and continued to perfect her skill by constructing her daughter’s outfits. She applied these skills as a costume designer and seamstress for her daughter’s color guard team for 10 years. This included translating imaginative costume and flag design to reality. These elements became the team’s signature mark during competitions. Her extensive sewing experience is not limited to clothing design, but has incredible intricacy and keen sense of color matching for quilting. Quilting became another expressive outlet for Gloria. Gloria translated her designing innovations from costume designing into quilting to create uncustomary beautifully constructed quilts. She

This process can also enhance our overall mental capacity due to the ways our brain create and follow the creation of embroidery patterns as well as develop our level of focusing.