FEEDBACK FRIDAY Videos

FEEDBACK FRIDAY was a bi-weekly show featuring Botanical Colors’ President Kathy Hattori and Sustainability + Communications Director Amy DuFault. Every week, Kathy and Amy spoke with dyers, artists, scientists, writers and scholars about their favorite topic, natural dyeing and color.

FEEDBACK FRIDAY surpassed 130 episodes and went live in May 2020, two months into the pandemic lockdown. Both Kathy and Amy realized there was a need to gather community in a creative space with artists worldwide scared, lonely, quarantined and unable to take a class or workshop for inspiration. The result was overwhelming with well over 12,000 people having attended a presentation live at least once but many have been to more than half.

FEEDBACK FRIDAY presentations are now viewed worldwide as part of college and university curriculum, natural dye and fiber organization conferences, education for global brands and independent designers and Amy and Kathy’s favorite group, the attendees in different time zones who would set their alarms to wake in the middle of the night to watch it live.

Thank you so much for all the support you gave us during our show! You can watch all of the video recordings below or head to YouTube where we continue to download episodes.

Video From LIVE FEEDBACK FRIDAY: With Katazome & Tsutsugaki Artist John Marshall

This week, we’ve got video from our live FEEDBACK FRIDAY featuring katazome (stencil dyeing) and tsutsugaki (cone drawing) artist John Marshall. John Marshall is an American fiber artist specializing in natural dyes and the traditional Japanese techniques of katazome (stencil dyeing) and tsutsugaki (cone drawing). He is internationally noted for his use of color and line to create truly unique one-of-a-kind art-to-wear, turning traditionally inspired aesthetics into contemporary treasures for daily life. As a teacher he is recognized for his ability to adapt traditional recipes and methods to suit local climates, resources, and temperaments – and for his ability to … Read more

Video From LIVE FEEDBACK FRIDAY: Rust Dyeing With Samantha Verrone

This week, we’ve got video from our live FEEDBACK FRIDAY featuring rust dyeing with Samantha Verrone. Watch the video here: Read all the answers to the question from chat we didn’t get to here: FEEDBACK FRIDAY Samantha Verrone Samantha produces one of a kind home furnishings, clothing, accessories and tapestries. Inspired by antique Japanese Boro and Korean Pojagi and the various vintage and otherwise discarded textile remnants she finds in her travels, Samantha focuses on labor intensive rather than resource depleting production. Every piece is made by hand in her Bronx studio and is stocked in places like ABC Carpet … Read more

Video From LIVE FEEDBACK FRIDAY: Rebecca Burgess of Fibershed

This week, we’ve got video from our live FEEDBACK FRIDAY featuring Rebecca Burgess of Fibershed. Watch the recording here. Rebecca Burgess is the executive director of Fibershed, chair of the board for Carbon Cycle Institute, and the author of Harvesting Color as well as Fibershed-Growing a Movement of Farmers, Fashion Activists, and Makers for a New Textile Economy. Some things that Rebecca mentioned today: -The main Fibershed website. –3 maps showing Fibershed’s Regional Fiber Manufacturing Initiative. The first half of 2020 focused on mapping the ecosystem for the supply and processing of wool, linen, hemp, cotton, natural dyes, and hides. … Read more

Video From LIVE FEEDBACK FRIDAY: Wild Pigment Project

This week, we’ve got video from our live FEEDBACK FRIDAY featuring Wild Pigment Project. Here’s the Zoom recording: Wild Pigment Project supports the global art community to use pigments that reflect values of racial, economic, and ecological equity for all, by fostering a network of artists, foragers, designers, craftspersons, scientists, farmers, researchers, ecologists and others passionate about wild pigments. The project aspires to provide generous resources to facilitate learning about land stewardship through ethically gathered botanical, mineral and waste-stream-derived materials used to make paint, ink and dye. Head to Wild Pigment Project and enjoy Tilke’s site for so many resources … Read more

Video From LIVE FEEDBACK FRIDAY: Kenya Miles + Blue Light Junction

This week, we’ve got video from our live FEEDBACK FRIDAY featuring Kenya Miles and her Blue Light Junction Studio. Blue Light Junction is a natural dye studio, alternative color lab, retail space, dye garden and educational facility in central Baltimore. Kenya is also artist in residence for the Baltimore Natural Dye Initiative at MICA and Parks & People, an initiative to grow and process natural dyes in Baltimore city. This was part 3 in a 3-part series featuring the Natural Dye Initiative at MICA. Watch the recording here: PLEASE support Kenya’s Blue Light Junction Buildout on GoFundMe here. Catch part … Read more

Video From LIVE FEEDBACK FRIDAY: Catharine Ellis

This week, we’ve got video from our live FEEDBACK FRIDAY featuring Catharine Ellis. She even answered all your chat questions we didn’t get to (below!) Watch the recording here: You might know Catharine as the author of what many call their natural dye bible, The Art and Science of Natural Dyes: Principles, Experiments, and Results. Co-written with textile engineer and chemist Joy Boutrup, the book is a comprehensive guide that explains the general principles of natural dyeing to help dyers become more accomplished at their craft. She also has a fantastic blog that features all her experiments that’s a must … Read more

Video From LIVE FEEDBACK FRIDAY: Zapotec Textile Artist Porfirio Gutíerrez

This week, we’ve got video from our live FEEDBACK FRIDAY featuring with Zapotec textile artist, natural dyer, researcher, educator Porfirio Gutíerrez. Porfirio Gutíerrez is known internationally for his exceptional devotion to the textile traditions of his home pueblo of Teotitlán del Valle, Oaxaca, a richly historic Zapotec textile artist community. His mission has been reinvigorating and preserving natural dyeing techniques for future generations. Gutierrez’s work brings awareness to a profound spiritual belief that nature is a living being, sacred and honored. Watch the recording here: If you are interested in exploring cochineal, which Porfirio talked about and is farming in … Read more

Video From LIVE FEEDBACK FRIDAY: Kibibi Ajanku

This week, we’ve got video from our live FEEDBACK FRIDAY featuring Baltimore-based Afrofuturist Kibibi Ajanku. Kibibi talked about being Baltimore born and raised, her art and dance work as well as how the silence around slavery and African people as related to indigo and other dyes needs to be better understood. She also talked about how some of her work with the Maryland Institute College of Art’s (MICA) natural dye projects delve into this and offer education, community and power. This is part 2 of a 3-part series with the Baltimore Natural Dye Initiative. Watch the recording here: As we … Read more

Video from LIVE FEEDBACK FRIDAY: Kathy Hattori Natural Dye Q&A

Check out our most recent live Zoom FEEDBACK FRIDAY with Botanical Colors’ Founder Kathy Hattori. Kathy answered about 25-30 questions on all subjects. You’re going to learn a lot. Watch the recording here: Kathy’s books she mentioned on the video: Lichens For Vegetable Dyeing, Eileen M. Bolton Lichen Dyes: The New Source Book, Karen Casselman Miriam Rice Mushroom Dye Books & Videos Alissa Allen, Founder of Mycopigments And that bucket heater for indigo! NEXT WEEK for Juneteenth on June 19th at noon… The Baltimore Natural Dye Initiative returns for part 2 of a 3-part series with Kibibi Ajanku. Kibibi Ajanku … Read more

Video from LIVE FEEDBACK FRIDAY: Aboubakar Fofana

This week, we’ve got video from our live FEEDBACK FRIDAY featuring Aboubakar Fofana. We got to take a walk through Aboubakar’s art and life’s work through a visually stunning slideshow as well as a mini-film featuring his farm in Mali, West Africa. We’ve never had more emails thanking us for giving access to such an inspiring human, and presentation as well as how honored they felt to be part. Thank you again Aboubakar. WATCH THE RECORDING HERE: Below is the introduction from today we didn’t have in the recording (because we almost forgot to record!) Many have asked how to … Read more