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Pictured is a raised beadwork wampum (Image provided by the Niagara Arts and Cultural Center)
Pictured is a raised beadwork wampum (Image provided by the Niagara Arts and Cultural Center)

Popular Tuscarora beadwork artist to conduct classes at NACC

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Thu, Mar 9th 2023 07:00 am

Master bead artist Rosemary Hill will share the history and techniques of traditional Tuscarora raised beadwork in a series of workshops this spring and summer at the Niagara Arts and Cultural Center, thanks to a grant from the New York State Council on the Arts.

At 10 a.m. Saturday, March 18, a new series of workshops on raised beadwork will begin at the NACC. Workshops will take place each week, mostly on Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., at 1201 Pine Ave., Niagara Falls. Each class will feature a complete project start to finish. No experience is necessary. However, preregistration is required, as seating and materials are limited.

A press release stated, “The first workshop, designed by Rosemary (Rosie) Rickard Hill and her granddaughter, Saeges Hucks, welcomes multigenerational learners. The class will teach students how to create raised beadwork over a quahog shell (wampum) in the Tuscarora style.

“Other upcoming workshops include traditional flower hair clips, and bird medallions. Attendees will create these beautiful heirloom keepsakes to pass down through the generations of their families.

More advanced multiday projects will be introduced later in the season.”

The NACC noted, “Rosemary Hill is an artist from the Tuscarora Reservation. She learned beadwork from her mother, Margaret Rickard, and great aunt, Gertrude Chew. Some of Rosie’s earliest memories include marketing beadwork at Prospect Park with her mother, grandmother and great-aunt, to hundreds of fans of this popular art. Rosie has been teaching for over 30 years. She is passionate in preserving, collecting and interpreting historic Tuscarora patterns and motifs, and ensuring knowledge of them.

“Her beadwork is based on her family’s beading techniques and traditions, and has been exhibited in numerous American museums, and at the Santa Fe Indian Market.”

The workshop is open to ages 12 to 122. The fee to join is $60, which includes all craft materials, and tools available for loan. Scholarships are available from the NACC thanks to a grant from the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.

For more information, or to register, visit Eventbrite.com or www.TheNACC.org, or call 716-282-7530.

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