Specialty - Bead Weaving

Tama Swain-Salomon is an off-the-loom seed bead weaver known for unexpected jewelry forms and bold, boundary-pushing color. He discovered beadwork after a serious injury left him unable to use both hands for more than three years; a friend suggested beading as part of his hand-therapy rehabilitation, and he quickly became captivated.

Each piece reflects more than 30 years of study in disciplines such as graphic design, painting, sacred geometry, chromotherapy, and apprenticeships with several medicine men and women. His work has been exhibited internationally, including at the Toho Bead Galleries in Osaka and Tokyo, Japan, and featured in publications such as Beadwork Magazine, Facet Jewelry, and Bead & Button.

Tama’s beadwork has earned numerous awards and honors. In 2018, he won the grand prize at Bead Dreams, where he was chosen for the People’s Choice Award. He later received Facet Jewelry’s Reader’s Choice Award (July 2019) and Judge’s Award (November 2019). His work has also appeared in advertising campaigns for The Museum of Beadwork in Portland, ME, and for Toho Beads in partnership with Bobby Beads and Starman. Also, Toho Beads invited him to serve as a featured artist for the 2019, 2020, and 2021 Toho Bead Challenges. He is a permanent ambassador for the Bead Workers Guild and International Beading Week and was selected as the international tutor for Melbourne, Australia, in 2021.

Today, Tama teaches bead weaving internationally through bead stores, bead societies, and retreats. Before becoming a full-time artist and instructor, he worked as an instructor for a college of natural medicine, as a chef, and in private holistic medicine practice. He is married with a daughter, and they make their home in California near San Francisco.