Today we’d like to introduce you to Vennette Farr.
Vennette, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
About seventeen years ago, I took a stained-glass class and immediately fell in love with working with glass. For a while, I focused on creating custom windows and other commissioned pieces, but over time my work evolved toward mosaics and three-dimensional forms. Eventually, I realized I couldn’t cut the glass as small as I wanted to achieve the level of detail I envisioned, so I began experimenting with other materials – taking apart jewelry and incorporating small glass beads.
At this scale, everything clicked. I found that combining micro glass beads with stained glass opened up new possibilities for texture and expression. Over the last eight to ten years, I’ve focused primarily on beaded skulls and two-dimensional bead and glass compositions featuring animals and other natural forms. My process continues to be very hands-on and intuitive, but the materials and subjects have evolved to reflect my curiosity and sense of play.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It hasn’t always been easy. A main challenge has been helping people understand what goes into each piece. Every single bead is hand-selected and placed one at a time, using a small dental tool I’ve adapted for the work. Most people assume there muse be a shortcut – but its just thousands of tiny decisions and actions that come together to form the work.
I think that’s part of the beauty of it, though. Each piece becomes a record of time, care, and quiet persistence.
Also, when I first began working with resin on three-dimensional objects like skulls, I quickly learned it had a mind of its own. It would drip and run where it pleased, so I had to experiment endlessly – building little barriers, testing timing, and finding ways to coax it into place. That process taught me patience and problem-solving in a very tactile way.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I’m probably best known for my beaded skulls- especially the ones covered in colorful floral designs. They seem to draw people in because of the detail and the way the light interacts with the beads. There’s a precision and rhythm to the process that feels almost meditative. Each tiny bead becomes its own brushstroke that adds up to something vibrant and whole.
People will compare my work to pointillism, which makes sense – except instead of paint, I’m placing thousands of glass beads one by one. What I’m most proud of is the response it evokes. People often lean in close, trying to understand how it’s made, and then smile (or laugh) when they realize it’s all done by hand. That sense of joy and discovery is what I hope to share through my work.
Even in my two-dimensional pieces – especially the animal portraits – there’s the same sense of playfulness and life. Whether it’s through color, texture, or expression, I want each piece to carry a little humor and delight. For me, it’s about creating something that feels alive, something that reminds people how much beauty and fun there is in careful, joyful work.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.nettfarr.com
- Instagram: @nettcreates
