beadlife

Beads and Life

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Continuing the celebration of the photographer’s birthday today, a selection of Carl Van Vechten’s  brilliant color portraits of African American performers: Billie Holiday, Geoffrey Holder, Pearl Bailey, Carmen De Lavallade, Ella Fitzgerald, Joyce Bryant, Harry Belafonte, Ethel Waters, James Earl Jones, and Blanche Dunn.

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Automeris io  ♀/♂

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The Extraordinary Fine Paper cutting Skill of Hina Aoyama

Using a simple very sharp pair of scissors Hina Aoyama has developed an amazing skill, and supreme patience, and makes almost lace like patterns out of paper. She has won numerous prizes around the world, and her work is in many museums, she now lives in France.

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Brianna McCarthy : Remixes

Loving these experimental works by artist Brianna McCarthy featuring a motion version of Brianna’s Anima/us Botanica series and the Goldlings series. I reached out to Brianna to share the inspiration behind the project. Below is her statement:

I wanted to experiment with motion of some kind, taking the piece from a tangible place (ink on paper) to a digital place as a photograph and then to somewhere after that point. It’s a process I’d like to keep exploring and expressing.

Connect with Brianna McCarthy via:

Webpage | Tumblr | Instagram

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Gifs featured on 2Dots Era!

Most lovely :)

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© Wirin Chaowana

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Mind-blowing oil paintings by Austrian/Jewish painter, LUDWIG DEUTSCH, LEON GEROME & RUDOLF ERNST in the late 1800s:

 The subject, “The Palace Guard” were depictions of North African medieval Muslims, THE MOORS, who settled in & ruled Northern Africa and invaded and conquered many parts of what we would now consider “Southern Europe (Spain, Portugal, France & Southern Italy-ala Sicily)” for nearly 800 years, from as early as the 7th to the 15th century. Their profound, cultural legacy, influence & what they left behind( Such as the great monuments, the Alhambra and the Mezquita) is evident on modern day spanish architecture, art, music and traditions. All but ignored now largely by both Arab and European world history, The Moors played a significant role during the shaping of prehistory in their early settlement.

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Hand drawn visuals 

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Stumpwork Beetles by Arlene White

Using only a few basic stitches Arlene White creates Stumpwork beetles with distinctive beaded and embroidered wings and bodies.

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Posted by scenerylabel: Folk art bottle by Maria Msiza, her mother Anna, her sisters Johanna and Sarah, and friends Anna Ntuli and Francinah Mtshwene Source: http://www.coca-colaconversations.com/2009/07/spotlight-on-the-world-of-cocacola-south-africa-folk-art-bottle.html

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Just in case you missed this :) DesignsByOnye #Doceria beaded beads. 

Photo Credit: VisualRepairStudios [FB]

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More wonderful beadwork by Jan Huling

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10 Places to visit in West Africa

This list is comprised of ECOWAS destinations I’ve visited and highly recommend and of places in this same region that would like to go to, someday. 

Goree Island, Senegal

Lying off the coast of mainland Senegal, the Island of Goree was the largest trading centre of enslaved people off the West African coast between the 15th-19th centuries and was ruled and colonized, in succession, by several European nations namely Portugal, the Netherlands, England and France. Today, the island serves as a memorial to this grim period in history when human lives were so grimly exploited and abused.

Cape Coast, Ghana

Similarly to Goree Island, the Cape Coast of Ghana carries with it a grim history that was inflicted on the island during the days of the Transatlantic Slave trade when it was one of the largest and busiest slave trading posts in the region. Housed on the island is the domineering Cape Coast Castle - one of several UNESCO World Heritage slave forts.

Mindelo, Cape Verde

Home to over 90% of the island’s population, the city of Mindelo lies on the island of Sao Vincente and is considered the cultural capital of Cape Verde. The town is surrounded by mountains and a coastline that offers serene and picturesque views of the Atlantic.

Calabar, Nigeria

The capital of Nigeria’s Cross River State, located in the southeastern region of the country, the city is set on a natural hill overlooking the Calabar River and was also once set-up as a center of slave trade by British colonists in 17th century. Nowadays, the city is fast becoming a cultural and tourist hub in the country and the annual Calabar Carnival attracts visitors from all over Nigeria, different parts of Africa, the diaspora and around the world. The Calabar Carnival is the largest street cultural festival in Africa.

Cotonou, Benin

Lying on the southern coastline of the country, Cotonou is Benin’s largest city. Easily accessible by road from Lagos - a lovely drive if no interruptions and inconveniences are experienced - this coastal city is a great getaway from the hubbub and seemingly never-ending grind of bigger West African cities such as Lagos, Accra and Abidjan.

Timbuktu, Mali

Arguably the most famous town in Mali, Timbuktu is a city rich with multiple layers of history as it played a central role in the geographic locale of defining periods in West African history such as the Mali and Songhai Empires, as well as the Islamization of Africa. Many of the monuments in the town - including mosques and mausoleums - have been put on the list of World Heritage sites in danger due to frequent attacks on the area in recent years. Timbuktu is home to three great mosques, Djingareyber, Sankore and Sidi Yahia, all built from mud.

Banjul, Gambia

The gorgeous coastal capital of The Gambia, Banjul is slowly becoming a popular visiting area for tourists wanting to make the most out of a beach holiday without intense amounts of maddening stereotypical tourist crowds. Apart from its coastline and beaches, this small West African city offers much to do and see from visiting the River Gambia National Park to fishing excursions and seeing some of Gambia’s historic monuments.

Lakka, Sierra Leone

With a population of a little less than 5,000, ten miles west of the capital Freetown lies the coastal resort town of Lakka. Known for its large beaches that border the Atlantic Ocean on Africa’s western coast, Lakka is a fishing town that attracts tourists from around the region due to its serenity and idyllic atmosphere.

San Pedro, Ivory Coast

A coastal city located in the southwestern area of Ivory Coast, San Pedro is the nation’s second largest port and is home to the Taï National Park - one of the last sanctuaries of the pygmy hippopotamus, which is listed on the UNESCO’s World Heritage List.

Monrovia, Liberia

Not often seen as a city to visit as a tourist destination, Liberia’s capital should not be simply dismissed or overlooked when planning a trip to West Africa. Monrovia lies close the western coast of the country giving residents and visitors access to the some of the country’s most pristine beaches. Furthermore, places such as the Sapo National Park, Blue Lake, Lake Piso and Providence Island are must-see areas for anyone visiting central Liberia.

P.S.: Before you travel anywhere, it is important to do your research on the place(s) you plan on visiting and make an informed decision on whether visiting there would be in your best interests, as well as that of the local community. 

November: Highlighting Travel & Exploration in Africa

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STYLE ICON: Dobet Gnahoré

Grammy Award-winning and World Music-nominated Ivorian musician and singer Dobet Gnahoré’s style is beyond your wildest Afro-punk dreams.

With a band consisting of her percussionist father Boni Ngahoré, as well as several French and Tunisian acts, both the 29-year-old singer’s musical sounds and aesthetic mirror various elements of Pan-Africanism that can often be seen in the jewelry she wears and the infusion of Bété, Baoulé, reggae, rumba and Manding influences in her music.

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Collection of kumihimo instruction links listed by Mortira, click through!

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Gwynn Popovac: BioMythic Masks

Artist Gwynn Popovac’s biomythic masks will be on display at the Desert Botanical Gardens in Ottosen Gallery in Dorrance Hall from October 1 through January 2. Each mask blends the textures, shapes and hues of natural habitats such as deserts, wetlands and tide pools with human features. These intricate three dimensional masks incorporate a variety of man-made and found objects such as wire, plaster, beads, fabric and stones.

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Thin Ice ~ An Ice Field Mask

by Gwynn Popovac, 1991

“step carefully as though upon thin ice.”.