Artist Spotlight: Rebecca DeBoer
Photo: Antonio Jimenez
Every month, we highlight one of the amazing artists in our reuse community.
This month, ACR has the privilege of spotlighting Rebecca DeBoer, an Indigenous beading artist who uses thrifted materials in her beaded creations, which celebrate her ancestry and serve as a connection to her culture while allowing her to be a good relation for future generations by creating with reuse materials. In addition to beading, she also models, draws, paints, dyes clothes, paints with bleach, scrapbooks, and does diamond painting and she hopes to try out sewing next!
Learn more about Rebecca and how she uses the act of beading to live out her Indigenous identity in the following interview.
When did you learn to bead and how did you start beading using recycled materials?
I first began beading my junior year of college in 2021. In college, the Native American Student Association was handing out beading kits for Native American heritage month, so my friends and I went down to our student center and picked up some bead boxes. I remember sitting at my desk finishing my first set of earrings— my heart was full.
As a transracial adoptee, I was not able to grow up knowing my culture. I knew my ancestors were Indigenous and I was unsure if I was even allowed to sit in my identity in any way. After finding community and belonging in undergrad, as well as learning more about Indigeneity and what it means to be Indigenous, I found that I have to live out my identity by being a listener, learner, and authentic storyteller. This is how the beads found me and have grown with me through the years.
Throughout graduate school, I began beading more and more. I would often find local bead stores to create more of my designs. One day on one of my thrift trips in Nashville, I found a bag of beautiful turquoise beads hiding in a drawer full of miscellaneous items. My heart and mind were moved by this small, hidden bag of beads. I thought of how this was such a lucky find and then I wondered how long they had been sitting here in the dust. As I thrifted more throughout the city, I began to see beads everywhere. It started becoming more clear on every outing that the amount of materials that have already been created and consumed, have actually only partially been consumed. If I want to live this life in a good way and be a good relation for future generations, this does not mean that I have to give up creating. Instead, I can create in a good way while staying true to my identity.
Do you have other creative hobbies?
I try to fill my life with creativity in every way! As a mental health educator for middle to high school students, I am always stretching my cognitive creative muscles to better serve our inspiring students. Some other hobbies include modeling, drawing, painting, dyeing clothes, bleach painting, scrapbooking, and diamond painting. Next on the creative hobbies wishlist is sewing!
Which aspect of creating is your favorite?
My favorite part of creating is not always knowing what the final work is going to look like. 9 out of 10 times I start beading without much of a plan. I like being inspired by what is in front of me and seeing where the moment takes me. Every pair of earrings I have created are so unique from each other, and I feel like this process really reflects this. The whole journey of creating often feels like a celebration for me because of this.
Where do you get your inspiration?
I get inspiration from a couple different places. Some inspirations come from things that I see in my everyday life. This could range from plants, water, animals, coffee, celebrations, etc. I also like to be symbolic in some of my beadwork to represent ideas or objects in a deconstructed, non-traditional way. I also draw inspiration from the colors that I already have in my bead supply. I try to pair colors that may complement each other.
What is your preferred way to engage with your audience?
I love getting to engage with my fellow creative community in person. ACR markets and Creative Action markets have given me the opportunity to meet some of the most inspiring and sweet people. Not only are these my Austin community members, but they are also creatives who share the same passion for reuse and living sustainably. After vendoring at ACR markets this past year, I have been able to have some incredible booth buddies and incredible conversations with marketgoers about who they are and their own stories as well.
Do you have a favorite ACR find? How did you use it?
My current favorite ACR find has been this copper colored wire. I have been trying to expand into new dimensions with beads and have created a set of orchids with the wire. I also created a bag chain with the wire, which was able to give some larger beads more structure and durability.
Where can we find out more about your work?
Since beadwork is an incredibly slow practice, I am not always creating new products in a specific space. If you ever want to learn more about my beads or keep up with any future vendor sightings, my Instagram is @rebecca_deboer.