Research, Robin Paris

Research by Robin Paris

It's obvious from my batiks that nature, the environment, and ecological and human relationships are important to me. Since first working in batik in the early 1990s I've attempted to consider my materials, tools, processes and their environmental and social implications. But my discoveries and actions tended to be disjointed - picking snippets up here and there rather than looking at and/or researching the bigger picture.

Since 2007 I've been studying and analysing various aspects of my practice, using a blog for a few years (2007-09) to record progress along with thoughts and musings.

Woad became my sole dye of choice in 2011 and I stopped using synthetic dyes. Woad dyeing evolved from using a chemical vat to natural vats using sugars and lime, following a workshop with Michel Garcia. Though for me with mixed results and so these natural vats are an ongoing learning curve. Using paste resist and painting it on with a brush (rather than my preferred drawing with hot wax resist and canting) developed throughout 2012, leading towards screenprinting paste resist before dyeing. This I found to have great potential and intend to do more.

I cannot say with certainty that woad natural vats and paste resists are more environmentally sustainable than woad chemical vats and wax resists when considered in the round. For instance, small scale they may be more practical and less polluting but whether that system could be expanded to commercial scale, and a scale to fulfil current consumerism, is another matter.

Batik is one of the world's oldest living crafts and artforms. That it has survived so long, adapting and evolving along the way, and still is made in many parts of the world by both traditional and contemporary means suggests it has some wisdom to yield about sustainability. I hope I can find that path.

Issues for investigation include:

water
carbon
energy
production/source (tools & materials)
waste/resource (tools & materials)
transportation
pollution
consumerism, fair trade and social
economic implications

Areas of practice for investigation include:

batik process
product and purpose
exhibiting
teaching, lecturing and talks
working premises
professional practice
work/home lifestyle
purpose of art

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