By Evan McMurtry Having worked at Burwick House at Black Creek Pioneer Village, interpreting the upper middle-class mansion to visitors, I remember telling some bewildered visitors that the red dye used in fabrics and in paintings came from ground up beetles, called cochineal. While visitors would often recoil in disbelief, they would be further astonished to hear that cochineal is today being used as a colouring in food, because it does not contain harmful toxins as synthetic red colourings. This anecdote illustrates that what is old is new again and indeed the use of natural dyes has made a comeback in recent years. This is welcome for many reasons. Firstly, the environmental impact of natural dyes is far less profound and, secondly, materials can be locally sourced, which makes them more responsive to their environment and easier to access. Furthermore, while synthetic dyes do not lack vibrancy, or style, or novelty, it’s simply that they’re too easy from an artistic standpoint: add the chemicals to whatever you’re working on and it’s done. With natural dyes, a skilled artisan can experiment, sense, and ultimately master the properties of the artform. This, to many people, lies at the heart of artistic expression. Proof of the comeback of natural dyes is now evident at a show at Craft Ontario. Titled Chromatic Geography: Natural Dyes in the 21st Century, it features 14 craftspeople and studios that are exhibiting various textiles and works on paper. Overall, the show is informative, well-presented, and inspiring to people who are interested not only in material history, but also in the present and future of craft. In the textile work of Mackenzie Kelly-Frere, Codex 5, earth-tones are not avoided at all cost, rather, according to her statement: “Plant sourced colour has an analogous connection to landscape and the natural world.” Kelly-Frere continues that sources of inspiration include, “sun bleached straw in wind swept snow and faded red barns”, as her ‘phenomenology of colour’ is present in memories of the prairies. Another work, Ocean Rug, by the MATSON + PALMER duo Jane Palmer and Christy Matson, is heavily saturated with plant-based indigo. What fascinated me the most, however, was the work of Jason Logan under the name Toronto Ink Co. His Ink Tests, as the title suggests, are swabs of various colours mixed together on paper, which show the main d’artiste in the production of his dyes. Overall, while not an expansive show, Chromatic Geography is well worth the visit to Craft Ontario’s headquarters on Queen Street West, not only for the quality of the exhibition, but there is also a very nice gift shop and helpful people on hand to answer any questions The exhibition runs until Saturday, August 26th. Craft Ontario is located in the Queen West neighbourhood at 1106 Queen Street West. Their gallery and store hours Monday, 11am-6pm, Tuesday to Wednesday 10am-6pm, Thursday to Saturday 10am-7pm, and Sunday 11am-5pm.
Photographs courtesy Craft Ontario and Alice McClintock -
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