about

Hello! Make Camp Studio is the creative and artistic practice of Natalie Vanderzand. I am the designer, maker and owner of Make Camp Studio based in rural Ontario, Canada. 

I work primarily with Beads and off loom bead weaving techniques to make work that is wearable and sometimes not. At times, I venture outside of beadwork and utilize a range of materials and mediums like wood, metal, paint and ceramic to make art and art objects. 

After graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Art from NSCAD University in Halifax, Nova Scotia I moved around, spending time in Canada's North, West and eventually landing back in my home province of Ontario. Although I have had a lifelong connection to beads and have used them in many other ways, it was during the Covid pandemic that I taught myself off loom bead weaving techniques, which very quickly became the main focus of my studio practice. I love the endless colour explorations, the tactile nature of beads, pattern design and the meditative quality of beadwork. 

The motifs and imagery within my work focus on place, the notion of home and draws inspiration from the natural world; the flora and fauna, land and landscapes, bodies of water and river ways, trees and expansive forests, the gardens sowed and flowers blooming.

All designs are original and hand made by me in my home studio on The Bruce/Saugeen Peninsula in Ontario, Canada.