EBP Exhibitors
The Emerging Beader Program chooses 12 exhibitors every year for a 3 month showing in the exhibit: Starting From Here.
Exhibitors have been juried into this show and are listed below in chronological order of when they will be shown. Past exhibitors are listed at the bottom.
December 6th, 2024 to March 30th, 2025
Kristina Amato
Kristina has always been exposed to culture and arts, but it wasn't until 2022 beadwork became a passion. She started her first design on a loom and very quickly began learning basic beadweaving stitches and then full bead embroidery- all self taught from social media tutorials. Kristina has created several original pieces that are displayed on her Facebook page, “Show Me Your Beadies.”
Born and raised in Northglenn, Kristina is a Colorado Native. The dynamic landscape and colors the region has to provide is a constant influence. From the neutrals of our great plains to the vivid mountainous sunsets. Kristina also lived many years near open waters and the ocean in South Carolina, Louisiana, and Virginia. By the water is where Kristina finds most inspiration and gravitates towards the calming colors the waterscapes bring.
Kristina volunteers as a board member for the Rocky Mountain Bead Society, works full time in Real Estate Operations, is a Mother of four, and adores two granddaughters. She lives happily in Brighton, CO with one son, a dog, and two cats. She hopes to continue to expand her newly released creative nature and artistic abilities, and experience more artwork in all mediums, including beads.
January 3rd to May 23rd, 2025 
Kristen Dettoni
Kristen has worked as a professional artist, woven textile designer, and pattern designer for thirty years. She studied fiber arts and works in all fiber mediums, including weaving, punch needle, natural yarn dyeing, and block printing. Once she determines what to convey, she chooses the best medium to express that idea.
In 2020, she read “The Woman Who Smashed Codes,” a book about the life of Elizebeth Smith Friedman, the first female cryptologist. While reading, Kristen’s most profound insight was a comment about looking for patterns to break codes. She began to explore the idea that art and imagery can be so much more than conveying a visual message. In these works a verbal message is beaded through pattern and color that remains well hidden. This adds an unexpected element for the viewer to discover and explore.
The “Signals” series focuses on secrets and security by delving into the historical context of coding and codebreaking. Each piece has Morse code embedded in the base, pot, or vase. The code is purposefully hidden or meant to look suspicious when the viewer questions if a color was mistakenly placed. During WWII, a simple plant in a window conveyed a message of safety. Each piece can be decoded to reveal a plant idiom.
Pamela is a Portland, Maine jewelry maker specializing in wire wrapped gemstone beaded chains. She comes from a long line of family crafters and artisans. She has experimented with many art forms including papercrafts, rug hooking, basket weaving, and even Ukrainian egg decorating.
Pamela has always been inspired by the problem solving aspects of material transformation. In 2022 her beaded jewelry journey began after multiple iterations of a gift failed to go as planned. She spent an evening with a sense of determination and some craft wire, and the resulting amethyst and silver chain was so satisfying and fun to make that she knew she had found her niche.
Making one of a kind pieces, Pamela primarily works with gemstones and freshwater pearls that are colorful, bold, and playful. Most importantly, her pieces are meant to bring joy to the person who wears them. A child at heart, she is still excited to show people the cool rocks she finds.
You can follow Pamela @bluejayjewelryco on Instagram.
Lindsey Kemp is a multidisciplinary artist, herbalist and scholarship student at Wild Rose College. In 2012 they earned a BFA from Ontario College of Art & Design University (OCAD). They currently reside on the Niagara Peninsula, in the area covered by Between the Lakes Treaty 3.
Lindsey's work often reflects the interconnectedness of nature and well-being. Their beadwork is a celebration of both the natural world and cultural traditions, blending the personal and the collective, the past and the present. With a mixed cultural background of French settler, Irish, and Algonquin ancestry, Lindsey draws upon a deep well of cultural heritage. Their work reflects the intersection of these influences, exploring connections to both the land and the traditions that have shaped their identity.
In 2021 Lindsey’s beadwork journey began and has since become a profound exploration of cultural and personal resilience. An accident early in their beading practice left Lindsey without the use of their dominant hand. Through three major surgeries and periods of rehabilitation, beadwork has been a path to healing. Re-learning the intricate techniques after each surgery has been both a challenge and a vital part of their recovery process.
Lindsey draws great inspiration from the native flora of the region where they live and work. Their involvement in ecological volunteer efforts, such as marsh monitoring and invasive species removal, has deepened their connection to the land. This connection to the environment is reflected in the motifs and patterns they choose for their beadwork, which honor the local plants and ecosystems.
Each piece is not only a work of art but a testament to the resilience of both the artist and the tradition they are honoring. Lindsey has been exhibited both locally and internationally.
Julia (Megan) Burchett is a queer craftsperson living and working in Minneapolis, Minnesota. She is a printmaker, papermaker, and textile artist that likes to explore themes of material, technology, intimacy, and destruction.
As a maker, she works with traditional crafts to make physical recordings of this very unique time in which technological progress feels feverish and fertile. Conversely, this creates a sense of rapid dematerialization: more and more of previously physical interfaces
are becoming digital. The strongest through line in her work is the material relationship to technology: Technology (using this term broadly) represents a formidable agent of change. Encounters with technology can be points of inflection that alter us instantly, in ways that are both brutal and sensitive.
Megan binged YouTube videos for a week straight to learn the meticulous and magical craft of beadweaving. She loves beadweaving for its luminosity and interconnectedness. She loves YouTube for its infinite potential to foster remote learning. Cars, conductive electrical tape, YouTube videos, and satellite imagery are all referenced in her work as examples of technologies that have the potential to puncture our personal and psychic realms. Every piece of technology presents an opportunity to transcend normalcy— creating moments that allow the eternal to meet the mundane.
January 5th to March 30th, 2024
Kelly Hudson, Maine
Kelly grew up in Hartford, Connecticut, but has been happy to call Maine her home since 1992. She discovered the joy of beadwork after attending an art social with some friends in 2020. Though she never considered herself very creative, she was excited to learn a way to create beautiful things. Kelly is self-taught, and still looking for her creative niche.
She dabbles in bead stringing, bead weaving, bead embroidery, kumihimo, and mixed-media beading. She joined the Maine Bead Society in 2022 to learn more and join the wonderful beading community. This is her first public exhibition.
February 2nd to April 27th, 2024
Susanne Verallo, Phillippines
Deeply influenced by her origins and her Italian training, Susanne’s jewelry work aims to take Philippine craftsmanship to the forefront, showcasing bold and daring creations that tell significant stories and stay true to heritage.
“Jewelry is so much more than decoration. Its personal and intimate nature makes it the perfect vessel for stories. The Philippines, my home, is an endless source of inspiration. As a jewelry artist, I choose to tell the stories of the Filipino people. From the myths and legends of our ancestors, to the beauty of our native flora, each jewelry piece I create is a celebration of our Filipino culture."
Susanne Verallo is a designer based in Cebu City, Philippines. She earned a Bachelor’s degree in interior design from the University of San Carlos, and a Master’s degree in product design from Domus Academy in Milan, Italy.
To discover more of her beaded jewelry visit una-artesana.com.
February 2nd to April 27th, 2024
Jocelyn Garcia, Chile
Jocelyn is a beader of objects, amulets and power jewelry. Each piece is a ritual in itself with a meaning and purpose. Pieces become objects of power made with clear intention, love and prayer. However, the work is not complete until the person who wears it makes it their own, and puts their own energy or prayer into it.
This process is an artistic throughline that develops with each stitch, giving rise to unique and passionate pieces. Her creativity is always practiced in connection and gratitude with the four elements and seven sacred directions.
In her artwork, Jocelyn reflects on her life as a Biochemist, scientific researcher, Kundalini Yoga instructor, and incense burner woman. These varied vocations resonate and awaken distinct areas of herself, translating messages, sacred knowledge, and even colors into her work. Through this practice she hopes to be a worthy guardian of the profession and keep alive the cultural ancestry of her people.
To view more of her work, find Jocelyn on Instagram @mujertejido.
April 5th to June 29th, 2024
Jo Ann Edwardsen, Washington State
Jo lives in the very North West corner of the US in Birch Bay, WA. She is surrounded by the beauty of the ocean and the expansive mountains, which influences the nature of her work. She took up beading with a passion during the Covid years and owes much to all the bead artists that shared their knowledge on YouTube.
Beads are, by far, Jo's favorite medium to bring her art to life. The myriad of colors, textures, and shapes offer a rich source of inspiration and expression. Whether she is creating jewelry or embellishing objects, she tends to work organically, with no set plan or agenda. She does not typically draw out a design as she prefers to let the piece emerge on its own, finding its voice with the beads she has at hand. The driftwood pieces almost always know what they want to be, she simply helps them flesh out their identity with beads and other objects.
May 3rd to July 26th, 2024
Karolina Turnquist, Denmark
It all started two years ago, when Karolina (Kaja) finally had more time for herself. She decided to try beadweaving and it was love at first thread.
Over the course of many years, Kaja studied old customs, folk art, and traditions of the people from her region. Recently, her main focus has been Ukraine, and has expanded to include bead cultures from various countries. She was fascinated by the use of jewelry in personal expression and belief, or as artifacts of social status. Kaja found that little glass objects carried history and beauty; people sent messages with their patterns and used colors to convey their emotions. She was inspired to tell stories that only beadwork could express.
Kaja is a 38 year old Polish woman living in Denmark. She has a masters degree in Ukrainian Cultural Studies and works in the jewelry industry. In her free time she designs and makes her own beadwork. She most enjoys creating earrings since they best express her style.
To discover more of Kaja’s work visit folkajabeadwork.etsy.com or find her on Instagram @folkajabeadwork
May 3rd to August 31st, 2024
Julie Gray, Maine
After experiencing a near-death incident in 2009, much of Julie’s artwork engages motifs of mortality, illness, mourning culture, and the psychological space of “limbo” thematically.
In order to address these intangible subjects, she has come to use symbolic means, humor, cultural signposts and varied media. She primarily uses papier-mâché, beading, photography, needlepoint and childhood craft. Her hope is that these creations become more accessible to the audience, and perhaps they will open up dialog about mortality and spiritual inquiry—subjects typically deemed “taboo” in contemporary North American society.
Whether a person believes that we return to the dust from which we came, we go on a journey to Heaven or Hell, or our souls continue in a similar trajectory (simply leaving our bodies behind), Julie’s goal is to normalize these discussions surrounding mortality and the experience of being in a human body.
Julie is a Maine artist and you can view more of her work at www.juliekgray.com or on instagram @juliekgray
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July 5th to December 1st, 2024
John Paul Amaral, California
Continuing his late grandmother Pablita (Paulette) Marshall’s legacy in American Indigenous art traditions, John Paul carries on the practice of creating Living Art, each made with the spark of purpose and duty. Gemstones and jewelry had always fascinated him, and creating jewelry allowed him to delve into his first love. In 2023 he took to beading tapestries. This granted him the opportunity to communicate heavier subjects through visual storytelling—a skill carried on in his personal studies of histories, cultures, and lores. He started with miniatures as gifts for friends. Then one of his aunts challenged him further and he began to explore the impacts of rebellion and colonization through his tapestries. He actively communicates with his patrons throughout the design process to assure satisfaction and dedication, even taking into consideration where the materials are sourced and how they are prepared for use.
John Paul is completing his BA in History, and is leading a campus beading circle for people to share and learn about their cultures and traditions. You can view more of his work on his Instagram @shashyohi.
August 2nd to December 20th, 2024
Hannah Batsel, Illinois
Hannah has been a professional writer, book artist and illustrator for over a decade. Recently she began exploring the world of bead embroidery and off-loom bead weaving. Her beadwork explores themes of magic, protection, and personal symbology: amulets and charms that either repel harm or attract desirable events and treasures. By naming our desires and converting them into tokens we gain and carry with us a greater understanding of our own values and identities.
As an emerging beader, her current body of work is mostly composed of patterns designed by other artists. She hopes to use the knowledge she has gained from those spectacular designers to expand her burgeoning catalog of original works. In her future works she hopes to explore garments as larger canvases for symbolic beadwork.
Hannah Batsel holds a BFA in Printmaking and Book Arts from the University of Georgia, and an MFA from Columbia College Chicago. Her handmade artist books can be found in library and museum collections around the country. A is for Another Rabbit and The Knight of Little Import, can be found wherever books are sold. She lives in Chicago with her friends and partner in a spooky old house filled with books, taxidermy, and as of recently, thousands of beads.
September 6th to December 20th, 2024
Kristen Lothspeich, Tennessee
Kristen is a mixed media artist currently residing in Tennessee. She started creating art in 2020 during the Covid pandemic. The company she worked for closed down leaving her permanently laid off. As a result she had more time, and hopefully some talent, to create some wonderfully interesting pieces.
She describes her work as "Art you wanna throw away in the trash." Her background in biology led her to explore the natural processes of decay and microorganisms. She was inspired to create her interpretation of rotten fake food from early childhood memories of her home. She recalls, “My mother had huge plastic and glass grape clusters on the bay window of our living room. I would pluck the plastic grapes, squeeze them and suction them to my face pretending they were warts.” Fake fruits were popular decorative items decades ago. Now, Kristen wants to bring them into modern day homes, but with the twist of making them appear rotten.
In these pieces Kristen transforms artificial food using paint, beads, semi-precious stones, cat fur, and found objects into beautifully rotten works of art.
October 4th, 2024 to January 26th, 2025
Connie Schardt, North Carolina
Connie studied Art History at UC Berkeley and earned a Master's degree in Library Science. For the next 34 years she worked as a medical librarian. Upon her retirement she promptly started looking for projects to channel her creative energy. Seeking an artistic challenge, a friend introduced her to a glass fusion studio. Her glass pieces tend toward Day of the Dead themes and portraits of known people.
Always in the back of her mind was the bead work of Sherry Markowitz whose work she saw exhibited at the Seattle Art Museum. Inspired, she turned her sunroom into a studio where she could create large-scale 3-D objects – swordfish, boar head, turtle, pig, moose head, stork, and even Elvis. Her designs are organic and start with a color theme and evolve as the piece emerges. She seeks inspiration from other bead artists and Indigenous cultures. Beading has become her passion, her escape, and she is always on the lookout for new objects to transform. Having no formal art training, she is self-taught and considers herself an aficionado and practitioner of folk art.