Invoking Indigo

Students from Upwey High School present their creative interpretations to working with Artist in Residence, Jude Craig.

Indigo is a natural blue dye, which comes from a plant. Through a process of reduction and oxidation, indigo surrenders many shades of heavenly blue hues. With the global awareness for sustainable lifestyles, indigo is once again being considered a precious commodity. The students have gained the knowledge of how to care for this living vat and how to coax natural blue from it. Students also watched the hard-hitting documentary film, The True Cost. This film examines the impact the fashion industry is having on our planet; how ‘fast fashion’ is driving the rights and wages of workers in 3rd world countries to an intolerably low level, whilst selling us the ‘dream’ of fashion affordability.

Substantiated by investigating artists who are manipulating clothing to create works of art, this was the springboard from which students launched themselves into Invoking Indigo. They were encouraged to rip and tear garments destined for landfill and to redefine the clothing’s sculptural form. Some embraced Japanese techniques of shibori, others attempted to create a variety of clean hues on clothing to form large organic works; all conveyed the message to tread more lightly on the planet.

Artists in Schools - A Victorian Government Initiative


This exhibition will launch the 80th birthday celebrations at Upwey high School.