Working with natural colorants is a wonderful way to creatively engage with the ecologies around us. In this five-day course students are introduced to beautiful, sustainable colors for dye, ink and watercolor. We’ll look into the historical and material sympathy between natural colorants and traditional bookbinding fibers: cloth, thread, and paper. After learning the best practices for immersion dyeing these materials, we’ll convert leftover dye to make pigments for writing inks and watercolor paints. Students will depart with an understanding of the chemistry governing dye, pigment, and permanence. They’ll take home the beginnings of their own swatch library and an array of finished ink and paint to fold into their studio practice. Previous experience is not required.