Project Description

When I learned to bead, as a young girl, it was to honour the wish of my late grandmother Granny Flett (Elizabeth Flett), that I learn how to bead. She was an amazing, beautiful woman who demonstrated unconditional love and taught me – in the short time I knew her – that family is a not defined by blood, but by love. I have also been blessed to grow up watching my granny, Mary Kappo, doing incredible beadwork, and my own style is very strongly influenced by her work. My work also contains the influences of other amazing beadworkers of my family: my late kohkom, Agnes Cardinal, and my adopted Smallboy family.

I remember once, when I was in my early 20’s, having a conversation with my granny about beadwork: she told me how proud she was of the work I did and I told her how much I loved to do it, that “it is my medicine.” She said to me, “That is what the old lady – your grandpa’s kohkom – used to say. She’d sit out in the sun doing her beadwork and she always said that it was her medicine.” So when I heard of this installation, I was so excited to participate and when I sat down a few months ago to finally start my vamps, I knew I wanted to create something that built upon the love and traditions of my family in remembrance, love and respect for our sisters. It was the medicine I wanted to share, the love and healing this work represents to me. So thank you very much, Christi, for your vision and the opportunity to share in this way.

And, along the way, the work of the other artists inspired and touched me deeply. Thank you so much, all of you, for that gift. I was also moved by the stories that have been shared, and am so thankful for that gift as well. It made me mindful of how this work creates and reinforces the ties between all of us, and also with those who are no longer with us.

The vamps are on navy melton, reinforced with canvas, and the beads are mostly all size 13 charlotte cut beads; the backing is a “kohkom print” broadcloth and it is edged in ribbon-style hem tape.

by Tara Kappo