PLEASE NOTE THERE IS A $15 CASH MATERIAL FEE DUE TO THE INSTRUCTOR.
This is a class for people who love to explore and experiment! We’ll be looking at potential mordant, modifier, and dye materials you may have growing in your Southern California yard, things you can gather in local parks, and materials you may find while you’re out hiking.
This is an all-day class (with a lunch break) because we’ll be covering a lot of ground, and many of the processes we’ll be using are time-consuming because they require more steps to complete than dyeing with materials that have already been processed for mordanting, dyeing, and printing. While this is not specifically a botanical printing class, we will cover some very basic print and resist techniques using leaves and other plant matter. All of the materials we will be using in class are vegan-friendly, though I will be bringing an example of cochineal-infested cactus, so students can identify it in the wild.
Materials fee of $15 (cash only, payable to instructor on class day) includes all materials and equipment needed, and sample swatches for experimenting before dyeing your projects. Students may bring up to 4 items for dyeing. Items should be primarily (70% or more) natural fiber, including cotton, linen, bamboo, silk and thin wool.
PLEASE DO NOT bring denim, canvas, cotton or wool fleece, yardage cuts longer than a yard, yarn, or other heavy fabric items like sweaters or hoodies; these items require a significant amount of extra dye. Some of the techniques taught in this class require the materials to be wrapped tightly around a length of pipe for steaming, so if the items you bring cannot be wrapped (due to size, shape, or thickness), you may need to use sample fabric (provided) or purchase a suitable blank in class for those processes.
**Cellulose fibers like cotton, linen, and bamboo will be most versatile** for this class, but protein fibers like silk and wool will work for dyeing and printing with class materials, after mordanting in provided alum, which is not a material you can harvest locally. Instructor will email more specific details and instructions to registered students before class.
Laura Davis is a fourth generation Californian who has spent the past 22 years living in Los Angeles. She is a lifelong addict to all kinds of textile arts, including crochet & knit, sewing, embroidery, weaving, spinning, dyeing and botanical printing. California is a rich environment for materials to use in dyeing, printing, and other arts & crafts, and
Laura spends a great deal of time exploring and discovering, collecting, and experimenting with ways to use our natural bounty in textile arts. Laura has been teaching fiber art classes through Griffin Dyeworks since 2015 and now teaches tie dye, ice dye, natural dye, and other textile arts classes for adults, teens, and children throughout the year.
The
Camera Obscura Art Lab hosts six artists-in-residence annually, and offers workshops with a changing roster of residents and teaching artists. Here you can learn dance moves, polish your writing, sew a seam, check out artists at work and find a creative community!
Web: santamonica.gov/camera
Contact camera@smgov.net & 310-458-2239
Fee-based events at ow.ly/IehoU
Free events at santamonicaculturalaffairs.eventbrite.com
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Directions: The Camera Obscura Art Lab is at 1450 Ocean Ave on the west side of Ocean just north of Broadway, in Palisades Park.
Train/Bus: Metro terminus at 4th St/Colorado, 4 blocks away. Upon exiting the station go west on Colorado to Ocean Ave, cross the street to the Pier and go north in the park just past Broadway. metro.netor bigbluebus.com.
Parking is $6 or less for 3 hours in Parking Structure 6 (2nd between Broadway and Santa Monica), and $5 on weekends at the Civic Auditorium lot just down Main Street at 333 Civic Center Dr. Meters on Ocean Avenue; $2/hr maximum 3 hours. More info: smgov.net/parking.
Registration: For fee-based classes, we encourage reserving online with a credit card. Some classes accept drop-ins. Bring cash to cover material fees, if applicable. Refunds/Transfers: Full refunds are given if class is cancelled before taking place - enroll online with confidence. For student withdrawals for any other reason, $15 processing fee for each multisession activity refunded; one-time classes & expended material fees are nonrefundable. Requests must be made in person, by mail, fax (310-899-0840), or email to communityclasses@smgov.net within 24 hours of first class meeting. All class dates, times, locations, and instructors are subject to change
