Tasmanian Feature artist at the 2009 SPININ

I was born and educated in Hobart, Tasmania, where I trained and worked as a graphic designer before leaving to work in Britain and later Zimbabwe. In 1976, after 14 years in Africa, I returned to Tasmania to study for my Bachelor of Arts (Visual Arts Teaching) and subsequently taught in Hobart secondary schools.

During 1990 I decided to leave full-time teaching to concentrate on my artistic career. I created exhibition pieces, taught numerous workshops and co-designed and developed a product, Silk & Ceramic, which resulted in commissions from the Tasmanian Museum & Art Gallery; Government House; Hobart City Council; the Premier's Department, State Government and the Tourism Industry.

I became interested in natural dyes and this was intensified after participating in Karen Diadick Casselman’s workshop at the TAFTA Forum in Geelong, Australia in 2000. Since then my dye research has focused on four species of Eucalypt—Eucalyptus cordata (Silver gum), Eucalyptus globulus (Blue gum), Eucalyptus lehmannii (Bushy yate) and Eucalyptus obliqua (Tasmanian oak) and four other natives—Acacia dealbata (Silver wattle), Allocasuarina verticillata (She-oak), Exocarpus cupressiformis (Native cherry) and Indigofera australis (Native indigo).

As a visual artist my approach to dyeing is different from that of the traditional dyer as I am always looking for unusual effects that can be achieved using shibori techniques with my natural dyes. Cellulose fibres (cotton and linen) and the protein fibre (silk) dominate my dye research and the special feature of my artwork is the use of resist techniques with organic materials such as Eucalyptus globulus nuts and rusty objects like screws and nails to create marks and patterns.

My coastal environment near Dunalley is important to me because it is the source of my inspiration and dye materials. Ideas occur to me as I walk along the road or beach collecting leaves, nuts, seedpods or bark from the native trees growing nearby. I am extremely lucky to be living in such a beautiful and unspoiled place.

I have exhibited internationally, in Tasmania and in other Australian states. Recent career highlights include exhibiting at the annual Contemporary Art Services Tasmania gallery and the following:
2007 30th Alice Craft Acquisition, Alice Springs.
2006 ‘Textile Journeys’, Design Centre, Launceston.
‘Brush Strokes’, Naturally Symposium, Shilpakala Vedika Conference Centre, Hyderabad, India.
Dye demonstration and poster presentation, Naturally Symposium, Shilpakala Vedika Conference Centre, Hyderabad, India.
4th Natural Dyeing Biennial in Aichi, Japan.
2005 Guest artist ‘Colour in Nature’, Onna Museum, Okinawa, Japan. Present paper at Second Natural Dyes and Pigments Conference, Okinawa, Japan.
29th Alice Craft Acquisition, Alice Springs.
2004 ‘Worlds Apart–Fibre Connected’—a two-person exhibition with US artist Judy Dominic, Denver, Colorado, USA.
3th Natural Dyeing Biennial in Aichi, Japan.
2003 ‘Future Perfect’, Bett Gallery, North Hobart.
2002 invitee to Colour Congress exhibition ‘Earth Tones’, Brunnier Art Gallery, Ames, Iowa, USA.
‘A Touch of Glass’, Handmark Gallery, Hobart.

Signed, DI Mcpherson