The Beadwork & Sculptures
of Thom Atkins

Thom has been fascinated with beads for over 30 years. He has done bead embroidery, jewelry, and added beads to some of his bronze sculptures. The beaded pieces found here are a body of work he has created since 2002 when he began the shift from bronze to beads. They are, for the most part, bead embellished quilts where the beads are embedded in the surface of the quilt and their application does the quilting. Using the quilt as a canvass and the beads as texture and paint, he has developed a unique style combining fabric and beads.

The sculptures represent a body of figurative work dealing with aspects of human life and interaction. I enjoy the nude body as a subject for it does not limit a piece, except maybe hair style, to a particular time or economic status. I consider cloths as adornment for the body, except when they are what the piece is about or say something about who or what that person is or was.

Click HERE to see the cover of my new book: Beading Artistry for Quilters!

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