Valerie Hector

Panjiayuan the Mighty

From my point of view, one of the greatest developments in China during the last decade or two is the emergence of free marketplaces such as Panjiayuan in Beijing. Or should I say re-emergence. For the Chinese people have long been some of the most astute buyers and sellers on the face of the earth. These impulses were severely curtailed during several decades of the twentieth century thanks to Mao Zedong’s Communist reforms, which discouraged private ownership of goods and property.

Those days are long gone. Panjiayuan is proof that capitalism flourishes in modern China. Every weekend, an estimated 50,000 people visit Panjiayuan, possibly the world’s largest…

Beaded Viruses

I subscribe to Beads-List, a listserve with beads and beadwork as its focus.
A few months back, I received a posting about the beaded virus models being created by scientist Dr. Holly A. Wichman, a Professor of Biology at the University of Idaho in Moscow, Idaho.

I knew nothing of virus structures, let alone that they could be modeled in beads….or that such potentially deadly organisms could be rendered so beautifully. In her scientific research, Dr. Wichman studies the Microviridiae family of viruses. A few years ago she took up beading, and at a certain point she…

New Work

A few weeks ago in my last “Studio News” post, I included mockups of a few pieces I was working on for the “Recycle: Recreate, Redefine, Re-imagine” show at Facere Gallery in Seattle. I promised to post images of the finished pieces. Here are the ones that I like best. They will be exhibited at Facere until mid-February. I had only two rules for this project: one, that in the spirit of the show I would use up materials I already had in the studio and two, that beadwork did not have to play a leading role, as it does…

Half the Sky Foundation

I am often asked to donate pieces of my beaded jewelry to various good causes, and I am happy to make those donations, especially when the funds go to cancer or HIV-Aids research. Then again, I also like to give pieces to fundraisers that benefit arts institutions such as the Bellevue Arts Museum and the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

But there is another cause that is equally worthy, in my opinion: improving the lives of orphaned children in China. Some of the orphans are girls and some are boys; many are handicapped. Their horizons are unfairly limited by circumstances far…

Chen Lulan's Abacus Museum

Chen Lulan’s Abacus Museum

When I look at an abacus, I see a framework containing rods that hold moveable beads. But are they really beads? Or are they just small objects that happen to have holes in them to make counting easier?

As someone whose assumptions are influenced by an intense interest in beads and beadwork, I would suggest that the answer is “both.”

But I’m not so sure that Madame Chen Lulan of Chengdu, capital of Sichuan Province, would agree. And she is by far the greater authority on abacus history, theory, and practice, especially as it relates to China. …

Turkish Beaded Mashallahs

January 5, 2009

They say memories are most indelibly etched in our brains when intense emotions are involved.

One of my most indelible memories came about as a result of a minor car accident about fifteen years ago. I was driving on an expressway in the Chicago area, and I accidentally rear-ended a taxi in heavy traffic. Fortunately, it was only a tap, and a fairly gentle one at that. Still, it was upsetting. A few seconds went by, and I realized that it wasn’t serious.

I saw the taxi driver start to get out of his…

Kiff Slemmons – Brilliant New Work

December 31, 2008

We e Chicagoans are fortunate to have Kiff Slemmons living among us, after she and her husband Rod relocated from Seattle a few years ago. Rod is the Curator at the Museum of Contemporary Photography at Columbia College of Chicago.

For many years Kiff has been one of the world’s leading art jewelers….although I am not sure that the term does her justice. She’s more of an artist who happens to work in the medium of jewelry.

Her latest body of work is being featured at the Douglas Dawson Gallery in Chicago from December 13, 2008 to…

Studio News

December 29, 2008

The last week of the year is always a quiet time, as we all rest up after the holidays and prepare to welcome the new year.

I’m using this quiet time to begin making a few pieces for the “Recycle: Recreate, Redefine, Re-Imagine” show which runs from January 28 to February 15, 2009 at Facere Gallery in Seattle (www.facerejewelryart.com). Facere’s focus is art jewelry, and the gallery is well worth seeking out on your next visit to Seattle.

In the spirit of the show, most of the parts I’m using are recycled. …

Two Beaded Panels from Czecho-Slovakia

December 20, 2008

Recently I came across two small beaded panels featuring commercial prints of the Virgin Mary surrounded by little beaded flowers and set within beaded wirework frames.

The heart-shaped panel shows the Virgin Mary by herself and the oval panel shows her holding the Christ child in her arms.

The front of each panel is topped with a glass dome, shaped to match the piece it protects. The backs feature metal hooks for hanging.

I originally thought that these pieces must have been made in France, possibly as an offshoot of…

A Spectacular Example of Chinese Bead Embroidery

I came across this beautiful piece in Beijing in 1997. It was hanging on the back wall of a tiny shop which was devoted almost entirely to jade carvings.

The shop attendant, Mr. Hou Wei Liang, was more than happy to discuss it with me….and eventually he began to tell me of his experiences during World War II, when he served as a translator for General Stillwell on the Burma Road. Or so he said, and that would certainly explain his excellent English-speaking skills.

Anyway, it is a spectacular example of Chinese bead embroidery, probably made…