Dutch jeweler Ineke Heerkens, the second annual Artist in Residence at New York City’s 92nd Street Y (92Y) Jewelry Center, will lead two full-day ceramic bead workshops Sept. 22 and 23 that are open to the public. 

The workshops, which are appropriate for all levels, will “include discussion of existing ceramic beads, what a bead could be and how to string it,” reads a prepared statement from the Jewelry Center. “Material research is a major component in the development of the bead, with an emphasis on connecting [and] overlapping.”

At the end of the day-long workshop, participants will trade beads with one another, so that each person leaves with a strung necklace that represents the group and the experience.

Heerkens personally creates art jewelry that incorporates incredible, hand-forged ceramic “beads”—often shaped to evoke seashells (see photo above)—and handcrafted textile elements. We expect that the artist will be pushing participants to consider the strung bead in new and out-of-the-box ways.

“Ineke was selected by the jury for her incredible work in jewelry, and her compelling interdisciplinary project proposal to collaborate with the ceramics, painting and dance centers at 92Y, in addition to jewelry,” said Jonathan Wahl, director of the 92Y Jewelry Center.

Heerkens begins her tenure at 92Y on Aug. 22 and will wrap up her whirlwind month there with the workshops. The jewelry artist maintains a studio in Amsterdam, and her work—which has been exhibited globally—is represented by Galerie Marzee in the Netherlands. 

The Jewelry Center at the 92nd Street Y is an educational outpost that serves more than 1,400 students a year through 60 weekly classes, weekend workshops, and visiting artists.

For more info on Heerkens’ workshops, or to register, click here.

Top: Beads made by 92nd Street Y Jewelry Center Artist in Residence Ineke Heerkens (all images via: @ineke_heerkens)

Emili Vesilind

JCK Senior Editor