SUNDAY VISIT: POPS OF COLOR WITH IAN ALLEN GREER

Every Sunday for Sunday Visit, Botanical Colors sits down for an interview with a luminary in the natural dye, textile and art world. Grab a cup of tea and settle in to learning about someone you never knew! Catch up on all our Sunday Visits here. This week we sit down with Ian Allen Greer to talk proving the world wrong with bright pops of color with natural dyes!

Give us your origin story, why natural dyes – what drew you to this medium?

I fell in love with the world of natural dyeing as a way to reconnect with nature. I had moved to NYC, from Massachusetts, for college and found it very challenging to be creative without a connection with nature. I began visiting the USQ Farmers Market to see what local flowers or produce I could use to dye fabric for my collections during my fashion design degree. That slowly grew into experimenting with food scraps and later on more speciality dyes from around the world.

I also realized there was a huge gap in the market for naturally dyed clothing that felt like they could hang on a rack next to other modern brands.

You have such a bold, beautiful command of color, is this intentional? How do you choose the colors you work with?

Thank you!! Color is to me is emotion. It’s powerful and seductive. It’s the medium through which I express my point of view. Natural dyes add such nuance and emotion to that relationship. I work very intuitively when choosing color. Most of the time I let the textile or fabric dictate what I am going to use. If an antique fabric has delicate thread work, I’ll choose to use a dye that is very powerful or saturated and doesn’t require a lot of time in a hot dye bath.

Initially my use of bright and saturated color came from me wanting to prove to people wrong. That natural dyes can yield the same brilliant color commonly seen from synthetic dyes. My goal most of the time is for people to interact with my work and the fact that it’s naturally dyed comes as an afterthought or as a surprise. Like “wow I love this blouse, the shade of yellow is stunning “ and then they investigate further and learn that it is dyed with weld !!!

What is your dream collaboration?

This is hard, there are so many. I think it would be really special to collaborate with a chef. I think designing, creating, and dyeing all of the textiles that go into a dining experience would be amazing. Tablecloths and napkins that are dyed with the food waste from the restaurant or dye plants that are sourced from the same farms where the kitchen is getting their ingredients. Oh an obviously the staff uniforms. An IAG naturally dyed chefs coat and apron would be iconic.

What inspires you outside of the realm of fashion?

I really love to cook. There’s a synchronicity between cooking and dyeing. There’s an alchemy there that I really enjoy. I’m very inspired by food and gastronomy. I often find color inspiration in cookbooks and at farmers markets. How the colors of all the different vegetables at a farm stand play off of one another. Or how a photograph of a dish is styled in a cookbook. Like what napkins did they choose to put next to this dish? I love that tension and I really try and bring that into my brand.

Where did your love of fashion begin?

I really came to fashion through craft. I grew up with a dad who was always making things, always working with his hands. I think I inherited that sort of diy mindset. Fashion always felt so aspirational but very much rooted in craft. I love the process of it, how simple squares of fabric can become these works of art. Really I’m addicted to the process of creating and I think fashion is the ultimate expression of that.

What advice would you give younger you?

“chance favors those in motion” – a fortune cookie I got the other day but it’s really stuck with me