| Original Message: Motives and Events |
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Hi Luann, In 1967 when I was 16, my motives for getting involved with beads were very simple. I was a hippy kid who wanted something unique/not-mass-produced to wear. I decided to make it myself. I went through various phases. I painted metal, did papier maché, and eventually tried to do conventional ("Indian") beadwork (which, by the way, I did totally backwards..., but from which I learned a lot). By 1968 I made necklaces for several of my friends in school, and had sold my first commission. Once I found a bead store, I was surprised to see how many kinds of beads there were. A friend of mine gave me an ear stud with a piece of Venetian millefiori on it, and explained why the pattern went through and could be seen on both sides. In 1970 I moved to San Francisco, and lived near The Bead Store, where I ventured almost every day for years. I worked there in 1972. In 1971 the Arizonal Highways article by Cloyd Sorensen came out, and introduced me to American Indian trade beads. By then I already understood that beads encapsulated wonderful history, and I had begun to absorb it. I moved from making beadwork exclusively to incorporating other beads into my work. I became attracted to chevron beads in particular (!). By 1974 The Bead Society (Los Angeles) was formed, and The Bead Journal began distribution. I decided to write for The Bead Journal about amber, since it was a hot topic about which I knew something. But I pursued research for almost two years before I wrote a 3-part article in 1975, published in 1976. I met Si and Ann Frazier, who owned a store in Berkeley (where I had been a few times), and found we had amber in-common (and much else). They were very informed and enthusiastic. We developed an Amber Group that used to meet every few months for a while. In 1977, with them, I was on the Founding Committee for the Northern California Bead Society. Jamey All rights reserved by Bead Collector Network and its users |
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