Beads all over the World. A Collaborative Exhibition Project (January-December 2025)
Beads date back to the origins of humankind. Present on all continents, they have served as currency, conveyed social and political messages, and expressed human creativity. Attractive and personal, beads spark the imagination when used in decoration, protective jewellery and memory artifacts.
Beads are both valuable and moveable: travellers and deep-rooted souvenirs at the same time; they mirror worldwide networks. The ‘BEADS’ project aims to foster diversity, inclusion, and equity by bringing together museums to create a collaborative digital online exhibition of beadworks in all forms of art, craft, and design from all eras and cultures of the world.
The ‘Beads’ project is a collaborative online exhibition project.
‘BEADS ALL OVER THE WORLD’ is an ICOM Costume Special project in partnership with ICOM Canada, ICOM Singapore and AFRI, aiming to encourage worldwide museums, institutions, and contemporary artists to produce an online digital exhibition of beadworks.
Global and inclusive, the ‘BEADS’ project convenes institutions, private collections, artists, and artisans from 15 different countries in Africa, America, Asia, and Europe, thus offering a unique display of works of art. The exhibition features about 100 items from various regions of the world, showcasing collections from 23 institutions and private collections across 15 countries. It offers a unique display, opened for free
viewing from January to December 2025.
The ‘BEADS’ project aims to reflect with equity the beauty, variety, and diversity of beaded items from different times, areas and cultures around the world.
This online exhibition was awarded by ICOM SAREC Special Project Call 2024 and co-financed from the ICOM Costume Committee.
Credit image banner: Volker Hermes, Hidden Forabosco, 2022
Project Leader: Corinne THEPAUT-CABASSET (Château de Versailles) Chair of ICOM Costume
Please visit our project page here.