Guest Artist - Sage Holland

I first met Sage Holland at my favorite bead store, Argenta Bead, a few years ago.  Her work, and the life that she and her family have created, are so inspiring that I wanted to introduce her as my first Guest Artist.

Sage is a world renowned glass beadmaker.  Her career began in Bellingham, Washington in the late 1980s, when she started working with Brian Kerkvliet of Gossamer Glass.  The summer-long apprenticeship with Brian began her commitment to glass beadmaking.  During this time, Sage’s seven-year-old son, Beau Anderson, began working with his mom to learn the art of glass beadmaking.  Sage, an avid cyclist, often chooses two wheels instead of four.  I couldn’t resist including this picture of Sage and Beau!

In 1990, Sage met her husband Tom at The International Bead Conference in Washington, DC.  Again, I couldn’t resist this picture - that's Sage in the middle.

Sage moved to Arkansas in 1994, married Tom, and now the couple works as a team teaching workshops and creating beautiful glass lampwork beads.  Sage has taught classes around the country and internationally in such cities as Hamburg, Germany and  Murano, Italy.  She has been widely published, including such magazines as Ornament Magazine, Lapidary Journal, and Bead and Button.  Both Sage and Tom's beautiful work has been exhibited in museums worldwide, including the Toyota Museum in Japan, the Denmark Glass Museum, and the Rockwell Museum in Corning, New York.

Sage's Work

Tom is a legendary beadmaking guru himself, and with two Fine Arts degrees is highly sought after as a teacher and lecturer.  He has been published in Bead and Button, Ornament, and American Style magazines, and in numerous books including 1000 Glass Beads, Making Glass Beads, Collectible Beads, The Masters in Beadmaking, and The History of Beads.   A longtime recycling advocate, Tom serves on the Stone County Recycling Waste Management Board of Directors.

Tom's Work

Sage received a grant for creating a studio for the Arkansas Craft School in Mountain View, Arkansas.  Sage's son Beau built the studio, the very best in the state for the art form of glass bead making. 

Tom and Sage built a wonderful teaching studio on their property in Fox, Arkansas.  The studio is completely “off the grid” and is built on tall pillars because it is situated over a creek.  Solar panels power the facility, and they have well water and a septic system.

 They also have a studio in the Ozark Folk Center in Mountain View, Arkansas and participate annually in The Off the Beaten Path Studio Tour .  Leisure hours are spent hiking, gardening, cooking, cycling, and walking with their dogs. 

Sage’s son Beau studied glass beadmaking extensively over the years, including renowned artist  Lucio Bubacco.  He also teaches glass beadmaking workshops internationally, and has installed beadmaking studios in Paris, Ireland, and Darhampsala.  Along with Sage and Tom, he also teaches classes at the Ozark Folk Center with his lovely partner, Vanessa Bunet, a wonderful glass artist from France.  You can find the beautiful work of all four artists at www.beauxbead.com.

Vanessa's Work

Beau Teaching a Class

Beau's Work