The Huichol are a uniquely creative native Mexican people for whom life, nature and spirituality are inextricably linked to art. They create vibrant and immensely intricate designs with colored yarn and beads, either embroidered, in jewelry or pressed into resin-coated surfaces. Their compositions are based on ancient symbols and designs, and their technique manipulates the effect of complementary or contrasting colors in negative and positive space in order to create halation (halo-like effect around figures).

The workshop starts with a PowerPoint presentation about Huichol culture, bead art technique and color theory, focusing on negative and positive space in order to create halation (a halo-like effect typical of Huichol art) by using complementary or contrasting colors. After the presentation, students create their designs, transfer them to their surface and start by outlining their design elements with black or white beads.

Bead art is best suited for detail-oriented participants. Larger beads can be used for younger participants.

The traditional Nierika Bead Art Workshop includes a conversation about symbolism and the spiritual significance of the Nierika yarn-paintings. Students are encouraged to reflect upon events, thoughts or beliefs of importance in their own lives and think of simple symbols or designs to communicate them through their images.

In the Abstract Bead Art Workshop, students express their creativity through geometric or abstract designs.

The Mandala Bead Art Workshop incorporates the principle of rhythm and circular symmetry into the design. While it is a bit more challenging, the results can be stunning.

Bead-art workshops require a minimum of two 3-hour sessions. All materials are provided. Workshops are available for all ages, skill levels and group sizes. Groups of more than 10 children or 15 adults require one assistant or more, depending on group size. In school-settings, the presence of the lead-teacher is required at all times.

While other bead-art workshops last two or three days, this week-long summer camp gave participants more time to plan their project and the opportunity to use a more refined technique that closely resembles the method used by the Huichol: instead of adhering the beads with white glue, they are pressed into a thin layer of wax, which allows for more precise work and corrections. Children could choose between small glass beads or larger plastic beads depending on age and manual dexterity.