Wish I had written that lyric.*
For much of Summer 2020 I was, in fact, busy dyeing. For me, dyeing entails hours working alone in my “studio” resulting in the textile bases for my artwork (and a trashed garage.) Coincidentally, time alone presents opportunities to contemplate some big ideas. Since my 60th birthday is imminent and we are living in the “Age of COVID-19”, the range of ideas runs the gamut from sublime to ridiculous, including matters of purpose, meaning, life and death. (And let’s be honest, haven’t we all brushed up against the concept of mortality while coming to terms with projected COVID-19 statistics and wondering who among us may be next?)
Which leads me to the overarching question du jour: What the heck am I doing with my fleeting time on this planet? For much of COVID-reality, my days have been filled with making art and tending my garden. These activities keep me firmly rooted in the present and are sources of tremendous joy (unless the slugs have invaded the lettuce bed, but I’ll hold off on going there in this reflection.) For the purpose and meaning these passions spark in me – and for the time I have been given to pursue them — I am truly grateful.
Dyeing fabric is an art-making activity I enjoy and one I engage in most frequently during summer months while the Pacific NW weather is conducive to the process. Dyeing is a multi-faceted, physical endeavor requiring a variety of skills. While dyeing textiles, I toggle between chemist and alchemist, graphic designer and fine artist. There is a dance-like quality to the movement in the garage, reminiscent of barre exercises when I was a teenage ballet student: a push-and-pull of the scraper on the silk screen, a pivot from print table to sink, a pirouette when releasing the textile to the clothesline. I find everything about the process both graceful and grace-filled.
I had the privilege of learning new dyeing techniques from Pat Pauly, an internationally-recognized textile artist from Rochester, NY. Since Pat has now adapted her printing classes to Zoom, a small group of fledgling textile artists from across the US and Canada joined her for several intense weeks, working from home studios. We experimented with print paste viscosity, fiber choices, unconventional printing tools and myriad techniques for applying fiber-reactive dyes. We flexed our muscles (physically and creatively) while transforming yards of white, soda ash-soaked fabric into unique, vibrant canvases for art-making.
In addition to the (ridiculous amount of) hand-dyed yardage that I offer as proof, I acknowledge the daily revelations that have occurred to me while spending time alone. These are the unexpected outcomes of the dyeing process; I hope they stay with me long after the days of COVID isolation.
To check out Pat Pauly’s extraordinary, bigger-than-life artwork and workshop schedule, I recommend her website: https://www.patpauly.com
*Giving credit where credit is due, the riff on the Bob Dylan lyric is from author, artist, teacher, mentor Jane Dunnewold. www.Janedunnewold.com
