ABOUT ME
I research and collect vintage and antique beads from around the world and create unique and inspiring necklaces, inspired by the individual beauty of the beads.
I aspire to share my appreciation for these incredible cultural artifacts and the tradition of craftsmanship that they embody.
MY STORY
I graduated from the famous St.Lucas Art school in Brussels where I studied art, design and painting. In 1976 my husband and I started a long journey that took us through Africa, the Caribbean and the ancient city of Rome, Italy.
My interest in ancient jewelry, traditional craftsmanship and antiques took off in Tunisia where I started collecting Berber/Amazigh silver, Islamic Art and old Roman objects such as coins, glass, chard and pottery. In Senegal I developed a keen interest in African art and crafts. I developed connections with local traders who sold Lost Wax statues from Niger, Nigeria and Cameroon. At that time the markets in Dakar sold African handmade Amber. While in Zambia I also came across many other natural gemstones such as Malachyte as well as Ivory – though I personally took less of an interest in these.
I became a full-time mother of three, but continued to educate myself and shape my interests as I visited neighbouring countries and visited various tribes in Congo, Malawi, and Tansania. In Zimbabwe I came across the famous and wonderful Shona sculptures which are masterfully crafted out of hardstone. After 16 years in Africa our family moved to the island of Barbados in the Caribbean where I became involved in antiquing. For several years I ran my own antique shop/business and my interest shifted to antique furniture, Morris chairs, Art Deco objects and furniture, old glass bottles and other objects that were salvaged from shipwrecks from the 18th and 19th century.
In 1990 we moved to the ‘eternal city’ of Rome in Italy which offered a whole new world of creative inspiration, artistic discovery and historical fascination for me. After 20 years of travelling and collecting art and antiques, I started to focus solely on collecting trade beads. I started sourcing trade beads directly from Nigeria and creating my own compositions using African Krobo beads from my own collection. I continued to collect beads from across the world and nurtured my passion for trade beads, collectible jewelry and especially old tribal silver through both research and practice.
Today I have created over 400 unique necklaces and still use pieces from my original collection. Today my collection includes trade beads made in Venice, Bohemia, Holland and France that were used for trading mainly in Africa, but other continents as well. My personal favorites are old silver and beads from the Middle East and East Asia. I have more recently widened my interest to both vintage and antique beads from around the world.
WHY OLD BEADS?
Over the years I have developed a knowledge base in bead art and refined my appreciation for the craftsmanship of the beads I collect and the traditions they represent.
The value of the beads I collect, whether ancient or vintage, lies in their rich history and cultural significance. Each bead has a creator, its own history, its own life journey, and represents a connection to traditional (and sometimes ancient) creative processes that have been lost in the modern world.
These values and fascinations are what inspire my imagination and have led to me to my passion for creating a harmonious balance between colour, material and form in each unique necklace.
My hope is that interested buyers may find inspiration in my necklaces and share my appreciation for these incredible cultural artifacts and the tradition of craftsmanship that they embody.