Genuinely Generous #2 - AngelinaBeadalina

aka “Ang” or “She of the wonderful Sculptures”.
Even a quick look at AngelinaBeadalina's Blog will tell you this is one special lady!

One of the first things I noticed when I first started lampworking, whilst wistfully drooling over the glassy goodness in the LE Galleries, was a very personable lady with a very catchy ‘glass’ name.

Desert Traveller

What made me notice her? On a visual level it was her rather impressive sculptures & their wonderful descriptive names. But on a more personal level it was quite simply the fact that whenever she posted to the daily S&T Gallery she took the time to comment on everyone else’s submissions.

Her comments were always positive, encouraging & addressed to each individual. Ang seemed to see the essence of what each artist had been trying to attain in their work, you could tell that she had paid attention to each bead shown than & given it more than just a passing glance. No small task on some days I imagine.
She was also extremely encouraging to ‘newbies’ & would happily answer questions. She gave the gift of her time in acknowledging the efforts of others.

Winged Isis

Later I bought Ang’s 'Winged Isis' bead off of her via Etsy Store & therein got to know Ang a bit better, rather than just a name on LE. I’d made light of an area in glass that I was having struggling in, & in her response I got an unexpected, but wonderful, list of hints & tips, she told of what had worked for her – along with a generous portion of encouragement.
I started following her blog & realised just how much this lady gives. Not only does she do wonderful things with glass, she’s a great photographer & a fabulous writer as well.

Ang's Business Card Picture - Human Condition

Ang has a voice, an abundance of wisdom & talent, both in glass & in her writing. I’m pretty sure that most would agree if you came across one of Ang’s sculptures anywhere in reality or on the web – you’d recognise it as one of “AngelinaBeadalina’s” immediately. Her sculptures are pared down, devoid of extraneous detail, yet full of movement & emotion, encouraging us to find true essence of a piece. In that – we grow as people.

Madonna and Child for All Seasons

She happily puts herself out there & encourages all to learn from her musings… whether she knows it or not.
She says she’s got attitude - & I might agree. But it’s not a bad one! An intolerance of injustice & arrogance isn’t a bad thing. Insight, compassion & recognition of others is to be much admired.

She Turned Out

Thank you AngelinaBeadalina, for your gracious gift of inspiration & encouragement, & for sharing it so freely.

Dance of Humanity

I absolutely adore the above piece, & think perhaps that it my all time favorite scuplture of Ang's. In fact I was ready to pounce on it - had it been listed anywhere. It wasn't meant to be however. Still there is something to be gained from not getting what you want - through this sculpture I first learned of the Maya Angelou poem "Phenomenal Woman".