ALIZA NICKLE
Melbourne/ Naarm
PILBARA BEAD WORKSHOP
Inspired by my grandmother’s creative practice of sourcing natural clay and hand-rolling beads, this workshop and my travels into the Pilbara are dedicated to my late sister Madison. Honoring the land and community she embraced as home, my visit to the town of Newman, a personal site of grief, became an opportunity to connect with her community and the land where her ashes rest. I respectfully acknowledge and pay my respects to the traditional custodians of this land, the Nyiyaparli and Martu peoples.
Natural clay sourced near local water sources from the Fortescue and Ashburton Rivers, dried up from the previous dry seasons.
From these natural deposits, the clay was submerged and hydrated in water, poured into pillowcases and hung to dry. From here, the clay was wedged and ready for bead making.
With the prompt of honouring a loved one we may miss or even ourselves through grief, we made beads using the natural clay and sharing stories.