Presenter: Rhonda Besaw, Canadian Metis/ Abenaki
Date and Time: Saturday, May 30, 10 to 12:30
Where: Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association, 10 Memorial Street, Deerfield, Massachusetts
Portrait of Rhonda Besaw, Canadian Metis/Abenaki by Gerry Biron, 2010
On Saturday, May 30, Canadian Metis/Abenaki beadworker Rhonda Besaw will give a two-hour hands-on workshop (10AM-noon) on beading around cabochon stones at the Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association in Deerfield, Massachusetts. The class is suitable for beginners, and participants will learn how to create a pair of earrings with a cabochon (a cut and polished stone with a flat bottom) bordered with beads. The workshop is offered in conjunction with Memorial Hall Museum’s exhibition “Made of Thunder, Made of Glass II: Continuing Traditions in Northeastern Indian Beadwork” that opens that day.
Rhonda Besaw is a nationally recognized artist who does both traditional and contemporary Wabanaki beadwork. Examples of her work are featured in the “Made of Thunder, Made of Glass II” exhibit, and following the workshop, Rhonda Besaw and museum curator Suzanne Flynt will accompany participants to see the exhibit and hear Rhonda discuss her beadwork. The exhibition includes over 240 extraordinary examples of contemporary and historical Native American beadwork made in the Northeast between 1800 and 2015 accompanied by compelling portraits of the beadwork artisans by Gerry Biron.
The cost of the workshop is $45 and it includes a beading kit from Rhonda Besaw, two hours of instruction, and a visitor’s pass to Memorial Hall Museum to view the exhibit after the class. The class will be held behind Memorial Hall Museum at the Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association,10 Memorial Street (rear entrance—follow the signs), Deerfield, MA. Class size is limited and preregistration is required by Wednesday, May 27. Please register by emailing pvmaoffice@deerfield.history.museum (or call 413-774-7476 x10).
