Stories from Above
by Sherry Farrell Racette
 

Sierra Barber creates subtle, story-laden objects with perfect stitching and an exquisite color palette. Throughout her artistic practice, she has been drawn to process work that relies on time, precision, and care. Sierra is a painter. She has worked in encaustic, oil, and, most recently, beads. She joined the OCADU beading circle, and like many of us, taking up the needle has been an act of connection and resilience. In these new “sister” works, the artist continues to expand on the imagery she has been exploring for the past three years: sky, clouds, flowers, and strawberries. These four subjects, like her work, carry a multitude of stories. While not literally present, there are discreet references to Sky Woman, Atsit'saká:ion (Matured or Ancient Flower). The flowers carefully arranged on sky-blue fields pay homage to her and the plants that grew from her body. In Portal (Portal 2024), ken'niyohontésha, the life-sustaining strawberry, falls like manna from heaven. The strawberry seeds become tears from heaven.

Like many bead artists, Sierra draws inspiration from our grandmothers and their artworks that lie dormant in museum collections. It refers to the forms found in the voluminous production of late 19th-century beadwork, created for the souvenir gift market. Exquisite beaded “fantasies,” picture frames, bags, and purses were sold on the streets of Montreal and at tourist sites such as Niagara Falls. These are stories of work, innovation, and perseverance. Once purchased, many of these pieces were worn and used, creating and preserving new stories. Sierra reuses elements of these historical works to tell new stories. In Portal , the shape of a beaded picture frame becomes a passageway, and beaded tassels adorn the bottom of the painting, as they once adorned a frame or bag. Storytellerechoes a floral arrangement from a mid-19th-century bag. The silhouette of the original piece is reproduced on the beaded painting, but freed from the constraints of functional form, the cloudy sky and berry blossoms float in suspended animation.

Using the concept of bead paintings, Sierra skillfully alternates between carefully placed or layered painted and beaded elements, creating subtle optical illusions as the surface changes and reveals itself. Her mastery of painting and beadwork creates a gentle power. Each carefully placed bead builds a surface, alternating between a flat, two-needle stitch and classic Kanien'kehà:ka raised beadwork. These new works introduce velvet as a beadwork surface, drawing further inspiration from historical artists. Working with contemporary and antique beads, stylized realism is rendered in subtle color combinations. A painted surface is visible behind an opening. Is it painted or embroidered? The viewer is eager to touch to confirm what their eyes are telling them. Thousands of stitches, executed to perfection, demonstrate care and a deep respect for previous stories and artists. These artworks demand careful and repeated examination.

While Sierra Barber draws specifically from her Kanien'kehà:ka background, the skies and strawberries resonate with a broader audience. Years ago, an elder told me that we use blue in our beading because blue skies represent hope. We look up to the sky for strength. In Anishinaabemowin, ode'iini (strawberries) are “medicine for the heart,” both literally, as medicine, and figuratively, because of their taste and color. June is ode'imini-giizis (the strawberry moon). They are the first sweet gift after a harsh winter. These works are medicine. Even if you don't know the stories, you will feel them. They lift our spirits.