Though you wouldn’t know it upon first glance, Molina Jo Parker’s clean, modern jewelry began as a faith-based venture. This was a classic example of how Native people took an element deemed “superior” to their traditional materials, and then completely mastered it and made it their own. These glass beads, which were available in bulk and much finer in size, became favored by Native craftspeople. When European settlers arrived in the 1800s, however, they introduced glass beads-originating from Venice, Italy-to the trading markets. Pre-colonization and before the prevalence of glass beads, they often adorned themselves with their own version of beads, making them through a laborious process out of bones, shells, teeth, copper, and other materials. Indigenous people have practiced the craft of beadwork for centuries. “Most of the time, you can tell what tribe someone is from just from the style of beadwork and imagery they use.” “In some cases, involves hundreds of hours of beadwork,” says Molina Parker, an Oglala Sioux beader, profiled below. Beads can be found on everything, from contemporary art and fashion designs to more traditional regalia pieces found at powwows. While various tribes hold different design specialties-the Navajo, for example, are best known for their weaving and textiles-much of the Native community across North America makes use of glass beads in some aspect. Beadwork is a pillar of Indigenous design.
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