Intro to Natural Dyeing

Dying to try natural dyeing? Learn how to dye all the colors of the rainbow from natural materials found in South Florida and across Latin America.

In this introductory class, students will learn to dye the three primary colors from Cochineal, Spanish Moss, and Indigo on swatches of cotton and wool yarns. Explore mixing primary color dyes, red, yellow, and blue, to achieve all colors, including the secondary color dyes, orange, green, and purple. Students will take home a swatch library of all the different colors they dyed on cotton and wool yarns.

These classes are designed to promote the continuation of uncolonized Pre-Columbian traditions from Black and Indigenous communities in South Florida and Latin America, while making a space for contemporary exploration. In this series of natural dyeing workshops led by Diana Eusebio, her mission is to provide skills and knowledge for a lifetime! All materials for sample making and learning the technique are included.

About the instructor:

Diana Eusebio is a multidisciplinary artist based in Miami, FL. She graduated from the Maryland Institute College of Art with a BFA in Fiber. A first-generation American, at the intersection of Peruvian-Dominican heritage and Black-Latino-Indigenous culture, Eusebio draws inspiration from the intersections of identity and community. Through creative exploration of processes such as natural dyeing, printing, stitching, and embellishing, her fashion, photography, and textile works preserve diasporic traditions, share stories, and prompt conversations around inclusion, love, and solidarity. She has exhibited at the MoMa, Hall of Nations, Gregg Museum of Art and Design, and Rubell Museum. Residencies include Deering Estate, Miami, FL; Oolite Arts’ Home + Away, Anderson Ranch, Aspen, CO; and Red Hook Labs, NY, NY. Awards include the Obama administration’s U.S. Presidential Scholar in the Arts– the highest national honor for a young artist, Oolite Arts’ 2021 Ellies Grant Award, and most recently, the 2022 Green Family Foundation Grant. Current Studio resident at Oolite Arts.