In beadwork, threads create structure and hold beads together, creating a seemingly invisible scaffold. As metaphor and as material, they unite form, design and meaning.

Beads, they’re sewn so tight takes up the depths of social and political relations expressed through beadwork, including living traditions, family and community networks – embedded in the visual language of pattern and surface design.

Beads, they're sewn so tight presents the work of artists Bev Koski, Katie Longboat, Jean Marshall and Olivia Whetung, who employ distinct techniques in their approach to using beads and thread. From bead weaving to loom work and bead embroidery, their artwork threads through formal concerns of colour and design attending to critical issues such as language retention, stereotypes and social/environmental injustices for Indigenous people.