Aboriginal Beading meets Balenciaga!

The Urban Dictionary defines "fly" as "cool, hot in style" or "fine, sexy". Inspired by this lingo and the  urban exhibition space of Fly Gallery on Queen Street West in Toronto, I created a Balenciaga styled gown made out of mosquito mesh for my upcoming installation next week. But the ensemble was not complete without a matching purse!!

With my recent success at using aboriginal beading techniques, I used one of Samuel Thomas's patterns for a small beaded bag (I think it might be called a bandolier bag). Initially I used his beading guide for the pattern on the flap but then broke away with my own design for the beading around the edges to highlight the qualities of the black jet. Aboriginal beading meets Balenciaga meets mosquito mesh!

Aboriginal Beading Meets 18th Century France

Trying a new technique takes courage and a willingness to fail!  I've wanted to incorporate more elaborate beading into my 18th century fashion pieces but was never quite satisfied with the results in the past. But after meeting with Aboriginal Beading Artist Samuel Thomas last week and taking his words of wisdom to heart, it seemed like time to do it!

Using an aboriginal beading technique incorporating seed pearls, I've intentionally shifted the focus from the foreground into the background.  In this manner, the floral pattern of the background textile merges with the embellished 18th century hat to create a playful commentary on the decadent excess of the period.

Here is a detail photo of the beading:

It is my version of aboriginal beading meets 18th Century France!!

The Source of Inspiration, Peace and Power

For each artist, the process of finding new inspiration is a journey. Sometimes inspiration can be found on one's doorstep and sometimes one has to travel far and wide to uncover it. For me, ideas often flood my brain like overloaded electric circuits, and I have to filter my ideas against the constraints of time, technique and consistency with my ongoing practice. But I try to stay open to what other artists can offer and with that in mind, I undertook a trip to Grimsby to visit with Samuel Thomas, aboriginal bead work artist. If you read my blog in November, I profiled Samuel Thomas and his work after attending a beading workshop at the Royal Ontario Museum. He currently has a show on called "Power of Place - Strength of Being" on at the Grimsby Museum until March 31, 2010.

The show opens with the following statement:

As the pace of life quickens and becomes more complex, we yearn for something deeper, more transformative, and more reflective. We need something to slow us down; give us pause, and allow us to collect our thoughts so that the body and mind can regenerate. Our inner spirit drives us to tap the powers, iconic symbols, and beliefs that have supported and guided people for centuries. We seek the goal of inner peace as a buffer against the complexity of modern times. Samuel Thomas

In this exhibition, Samuel Thomas highlights the art pieces he created in journeying to places of power around the world, including the Egyptian pyramids, Stonehenge, Kenya, Temple of Kuglacan in Mexico, and Niagara Falls. He created art works at each of these sites, using materials purchased locally. Although each piece incorporates imagery and symbols from the place it was created, they are coherent in vision, representing the social connection, spiritual principles and traditional beadwork techniques of the artist. Each piece is mind-blowing in its conception and beauty, especially this one created in Egypt which is my favourite.

Sam Thomas kindly answered endless questions about his work and seemed to be quite embarrassed by the many compliments he heard that afternoon. But what I took away with me was something which I might easily have overlooked. On one of the explanatory panels, he stated:

Power places have a natural eloquence that is always beautiful and always inspirational, however, of all the sacred power places on the planet, the hardest one to reach is inside our self. (Samuel Thomas)


I think it is worth repeating the hardest [sacred power place] to reach is inside our self.  It was that statement that sent me on the journey of creating artwork based on my mother's dresses. Where that project will end up, I'm not sure but I know it is probably one of the most important art projects I'll ever undertake. And so I must offer up my thanks to Samuel Thomas.

Power of Place - Strength of Being
An Exhibition by Samuel Thomas
Grimsby Museum,
6 Murray Street, Grimsby, Ontario
Ongoing until March 31, 2010
And then traveling....

Profile of an Artist: Samuel Thomas

Samuel Thomas,  a member of the Lower Cayuga Band of the Iroquois Nation, is a self-taught artist who incorporates traditional Iroquois embossed (three-dimensional) beading and symbolism in his pieces. Over the past 27 years, he has received over 90 national and international awards for his work and has pieces in permanent collections of many museums in the United States and Canada, including the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto.

Sam initially learned to work with leather and discovered bead work when he wanted to embellish his leather pieces. He began to research and revitalize traditional bead work techniques and found his calling in this intricate art. Sam incorporates traditional Iroquois design, symbolism and teachings into his contemporary pieces which typically include the strawberry and hummingbird as his personal identity markers. The strawberry is an important fruit to the Iroquois people, as one of the five sacred gifts that Sky Woman brought to the earth when she fell through a hole left by the uprooting of the celestial tree in the sky world as well as having medicinal properties. The hummingbird is a contemporary motif representing the balance between good and evil.

Samuel Thomas's projects have spanned the globe. In 2003, he received several grants including an Ontario Arts Council grant and a Canada Council grant to collaborate with African artists to create a six foot tall beaded tree of peace, a "visual representation of cross-cultural peace and unity". While in Africa, Thomas worked with indigenous peoples and artists to learn their almost extinct beading techniques, document their heritage and conduct collaborative workshops.  This project was based on the traditional Iroquoian teaching of peace and unity in which a white pine tree was uprooted and all weapons of war were placed into the pit with the tree re-planted on top to become the Great Tree of Peace. It was told that the roots of the Great Tree spread in all directions of Mother Earth and that anyone seeking peace and protection under the Great Tree can follow the roots back to their source to find peace. Each element of the tree was carefully considered as to its underlying meaning. For example, there are fifty branches to represent the fifty original chiefs of the Iroquois Confederacy, fifty strawberries to symbolize cleansing and renewal, and an eagle perched on top to watch for danger and protect the people. Even the East Africans bead winding process called Mutilima is representative of the continuous winding symbolizing the continuity of life.  The Great Tree of Peace was unveiled at the United Nations headquarters on May 15, 2007.

More recently, Samuel Thomas traveled to places of sacred power as Stonehenge, the Temple of Delphi in Greece, the Egyptian Pyramids, Kenya, and our own Niagara Falls. While at these places of power, Samuel Thomas used them as sources of inspiration for bead work pieces created on site. The result of this work will be unveiled at the Grimsby Museum in December 2009.

This humble artist has created incredibly powerful work that celebrates the traditions of his people while furthering the cause of peace and harmony through the world. He does not have his own website and neither is he interested in publicity. Nevertheless, he is both a great artist and a great man and that is the reason I wanted to acknowledge his very important work.

To see a few more examples of Samuel Thomas' beautiful beadwork, visit Bear Paw Keepsakes on-line or visit the Grimsby Museum in Ontario (December 10, 2009 to March 2010).

Beading Workshop with Samuel Thomas

Hand-beaded Strawberry by Ingrid Mida (under direction of Samuel Thomas) 2009


To the Iroquois people, the strawberry is one of the most important fruits because it has powerful healing properties. As well, the ripening of the strawberry is symbolic of spring's defeat of winter. As I listened to artist Samuel Thomas talk about the symbolism behind his work, I felt in awe of this talented man who for the last 26 years has presented lectures, demonstrations and workshops to revive Iroquois embossed (three-dimensional) beadwork.

During a one-hour workshop (part of the Embellishment Canadian Style symposium at the Royal Ontario Museum) last Saturday, I created this beaded strawberry under Samuel Thomas's patient direction. The materials were left-overs from Samuel's latest project which involved visits to such sacred places as Stonehenge, the Egyptian pyramids, and Niagara Falls. The red wool of the strawberry came from his Stonehenge project, while the gold beads, sand (used for filler) and the thread came from his Egypt project. This is one powerful amulet!

The work from Samuel Thomas' journey to sacred places will be on display at the Grimsby Museum in Ontario from December 10, 2009 to March 2010. And even though Samuel doesn't have a website and didn't seem very interested in publicity, I plan to write up a profile of this accomplished and important artist.