Wine bottle with stopper c. mid 20th century

Here is a wine bottle with stopper, made out of beads by Grasslands. Look at the way the beads give form to the bottle. Imagine the hand of the artist carefully placing each tiny bead. Think about the time involved, and the patience, as the pattern slowly emerges. The lower part is bulbous, covered with concentric swirls of white and black. I wonder how the maker made this form, what kind of structure is underneath the beads. On the neck, the colours change to yellow, black, white and blue zigzags. It's a really joyous object, isn't it? I imagine the artist in dialogue with those who came before them, reaching back to indigenous traditions and innovating something new. The care and love, that sense of repetition and rhythm. Every object tells a story and expands our understanding of the world.