Holiday Tutor: Caroline Nixon
Caroline has been working with ecoprint and natural dyes for over 7 years and has taught and exhibited widely both abroad and in the UK. She is particularly known for her ways of combining ecoprint innovatively with natural dyes.
Ecoprinting, or botanical contact printing is a way of transferring the beautiful shapes and colours of foliage onto cloth to make permanent prints, using heat and pressure. Combined with plant based dyes, beautiful and complex results can be obtained.
“Early in her art journey, Caroline found a passion for printing and dyeing fabrics, but her health challenges prevented her from using chemical-based products. Armed with her science background, Caroline literally began foraging outdoors to discover what types of natural dyes surrounded her. As the saying goes, the rest is history. Caroline is now a world-renowned expert on eco-printing and dyeing” TextileArtist.org.uk
She comments…
“Though natural dyeing has a long history and comprehensive knowledge base, ecoprinting is a relatively new art form. There are many unknowns, so I am always experimenting and always asking ‘what if…?’ My work evolves as I discover new and exciting interactions between leaves, dyes and fabrics. Due to these discoveries, when I look back at my work from five years ago, I am surprised by how much I have extended my colour palette, composition and range of techniques. Nature is so full of wonderful surprises, I feel sure these discoveries will go on and on.”
Here is a link to an article published recently about her.
Caroline Nixon: Stitching into botanical magic
Caroline’s website : www.handmadetextilesbycaroline.co.uk