BEADWORK BY BLACK LOTUS Artist Bio

I am a writer, a poet, a journeyman proofreader and a bead artist.  I have two children, five grandchildren, one great-grandchild; fourteen brothers and sisters, and I have lost count of my nieces, nephews and great nieces and nephews. Born in the Delta Area of Mississippi and growing up near the Mississippi River in Waterloo, Iowa, my family was my village and a sense of community is ingrained.  We lived off the land, so the spirit of the elements - earth, air, fire, water, wood, stone, metal - all shaped the artist I have become.

For my beadwork and folk art, I like variety in textures; deep rich colors; stones, gems and seeds; wire wrap, knots, and precious metal clay; for my bags and little books - raffia, brown paper grocery bags and handmade papers from all over the United States and other countries.

I do not like machine smooth edge precision. I like to make my work a little lop-sided, with the edges not quite matching. I make purposeful flaws in the designs as my signature, for instance, one end of a necklace might not match the other end. This is another fun part of beading, experimenting with different materials and techniques. As the work develops, a name for the piece often comes to help me finish.

When this current economic crisis hit in 2001, I became one of those struggling to meet basic needs as I ricocheted between unemployment and underemployment.  To dig myself out of the financial hole this state of affairs created, I drew on different talents inherited from my parents (making a way out of no way) and the gifts I was born with (power of words and art).

Through Urban FIRE, an entrepreneurial program founded and taught by Boku Kodama, I launched Black Lotus Editorial Services (BLESS) providing writing, editing, and proofreading.  I also re-launched Black Lotus Enterprises, a company I started in the 70s.  BLE is the umbrella company for my other endeavours --workshops, poetry, presentations on "Financial Planning for the Underemployed," and other interests.  The newest offspring of Black Lotus Enterprises is Beadwork by Black Lotus. 

Through Beadwork by Black Lotus, BLESS and Black Lotus Enterprises, my goal is to help myself and others in our village to not just survive but to thrive in these times of adversity and create a plan for times of plenty.  This is one of the reasons I have linked causes with groups such as Just Us Networking Association (JUNA), Urban FIRE, Oakland Unwrapped, One California Bank and Oaklandlocal.com.  They have a vision of the present that can help the community based businesses sustain each other and thrive into the future.