Featured Artist Diane Brown-Steiner

LUNACY BEADINGSubmitted by Diane Brown-Steiner

Time passes and my priorities change, yet I retain elements from my childhood. I use objects I love, and have found my own vision and method for using them. Bringing these visions into being gives me a renewing sense of creativity and accomplishment. Renewing to me, and to some of my materials!

It seems I have always had beads around. As a child I would get to go to the local dime store in Webster (anyone remember Bowmans?) for penny candy. Instead, I bought tubes of beads. I now am a bead embroiderer and create gemstone chip bracelets and “Andromeda” bracelets (bracelets with a “galaxy” of beads!). Friends would look at my work and say, “That’s crazy!”

Lunacy Beading was born! I have also had an affinity to buttons. As a child I gathered and saved the beautiful buttons in my mother’s button can. I now seek out antique and vintage buttons with beauty and style to create pendants. I love that many of these buttons were USED. They had prior owners, unknown travels. I don’t mind that some of them show some wear. It’s proof that they had a previous life; this makes them romantic and mysterious.

Searching for antique buttons, I would occasionally acquire an old mechanical watch. Taking one apart once, I found the beauty of the tiny gears, sprockets, screws, plates and springs unexpected. I had to find a way to use them, and created my clockwork pendants.

I remember going to Artist Row several years ago, and being impressed with the artist’s vision and methods. I am elated that I can now be one of the artists.