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November 3, 2019 2:00–4:00 pm
Duke Arts Annex
Textile Arts

Indigo Dyeing

Taught by River Takada-Capel

Indigo Dyeing

The focus of this workshop is on learning the fundamentals of how Indigo Dye Vat is made, best practices, materials needed, and demonstrations of creative surface design through the Japanese technique of Itajime Shibori, a shaped-resist technique. Traditionally, in this ancient tie-die technique, the cloth is sandwiched between two pieces of wood, which are held in place with string or rubber bands.

Participants are encouraged to bring 2-3 items made of natural cellulose fibers (e.g. cotton, linen, or rayon) to dye or upcycle. You will be provided with sample fabrics to experiment with.

The following are supplied by the instructor in all Indigo Classes:

  • Clamps, resists, rubber bands, gloves and other studio supplies
  • Resource list for continuing indigo dyeing beyond the workshop!

About the Instructor

River Takada-Capel is a Durham-based textile artist and freelance teacher. She has a small-batch production company, RIVTAK, established in 2007, now selling hand-crafted products in 12 independently owned shops.

Born in Tokyo, Japan and raised in Carrboro, NC, River grew up with an appreciation for the constant change in nature and the beauty of functional art. She loves to work with kids and adults, empowering folks by sharing the creative and vocational powers of sewing and other textile skills. River is an arts and LGBTQ community advocate who turned her dream of creative and social practice into a passionate career. On most days, you’ll either find her designing, sewing, or screen printing inside her Golden Belt studio or you’ll find her outside, dyeing fabric.

When River is not working for her business, she is teaching fiber arts at community centers around the state. She has taught at The ArtsCenter, The Scrap Exchange, ArtSpace, The NC Museum of Art, Freeman’s Creative, NCSU Craft Center and many small private groups.

About the Location

This workshop meets in the Duke Arts Annex: get directions.

About Duke Arts Create

Duke Arts Create is a series of free, hands-on arts workshops designed to help all Duke students, including graduate and professional students (including Duke Health), as well as Duke faculty and staff develop a variety of creative skills in the visual arts, dance and movement, creative writing and more. Workshops are open to all skill levels and backgrounds. Most workshops are held in the Duke Arts Annex, the Rubenstein Arts Center or the Duke Arts Office 2101 and are typically held weeknights from 6-8 p.m.

Registration for the following week’s workshops go live on Friday mornings at 9 a.m. – sign up in advance to guarantee your spot. Didn’t get a spot? No problem! We always reserve space for walk-ins. Email DukeCreate@duke.edu if you have any questions. Sign up for the monthly newsletter here, which includes the full list of classes offered during the following month.

Duke Arts Create is sponsored by the Office of the Vice Provost for the Arts (Duke Arts).