The cliffs of the SW Coast Path have become my colour palette. My MA research focused on the collection, processing, and use of locally derived earth pigments to colour cloth. Local sandstones, chalk, Lias and Greensand (both types of clay) range in colour from soft pink, ochre and white to grey-green and dark bluish-grey. These pigments are a direct link to place and represent a surprisingly beautiful outcome, given some of the bleaker starting points; mixed with soya milk binder they offer a sustainable way of colouring cloth.
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Patterns observed on the concrete sea defences caused by colonisation by algae and lichens represent the tension between natural processes and the needs/actions of people. I particularly like the idea of recreating the marks and textures found in the built environment using naturally derived materials.
The use of hand-made nets is intrinsic to the message I wish to convey, speaking to the contradiction between our need to control our coastal environment and our essential interconnectedness with the natural world, and linking back to the traditional skills and industries of this part of the coast.
The images below show some of the pigments and the places where I collected them, and a selection of samples being developed into work for exhibition.
The use of hand-made nets is intrinsic to the message I wish to convey, speaking to the contradiction between our need to control our coastal environment and our essential interconnectedness with the natural world, and linking back to the traditional skills and industries of this part of the coast.
The images below show some of the pigments and the places where I collected them, and a selection of samples being developed into work for exhibition.
Budleigh to West Bay - 56km.
L-R: Otter, Ladram, Chalk, Greensand, Foxmould, Lias, West Bay