6/13 – 6/14
Navajo Wool Dye Techniques and Sustainability
with Venancio Aragon

Join Venancio Aragon in this two-day workshop to explore the techniques of extracting color from plants to dye wool. A focus will be made on local ecology and sustainable methods of harvesting and dyeing with plants. Students will learn the importance of color extraction to the Navajo People and the place textiles have within the cultural history of the Southwest. Special attention will be given to alternative dyeing methods that aim to reduce one’s carbon footprint and conserve water. Students will get to bring home their own bundle of dyed wool yarns.

No previous experience is required and all materials will be provided. Venancio Aragon will be exhibiting his work at Ah Haa during the month of June.

About the Artist

Venancio Aragón is a Diné textile artist and holds two Bachelor of Arts degrees: one in Cultural Anthropology from the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque and the other in Native American Studies from Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colorado. Prior to becoming a full-time artist, Venancio worked for the National Park Service as an interpretive ranger in various parks and monuments throughout the Southwest. His interest in archaeology, anthropology, and art has led him on a journey of researching and reviving portions of the Diné weaving repertoire that are in danger of being lost. Venancio was the 2020 Rollin and Mary Ella King Native Artist Fellow at the School for Advanced Research (SAR) in Santa Fe, New Mexico. His work at SAR centered on documenting and recreating lesser known and uncommon Diné weaving techniques. He lives and works Farmington, New Mexico, where he continues to educate and promote Diné weaving as a form of decolonial expression. Venancio’s textiles were part of the exhibitions Color Riot! How Color Changed Navajo Textiles, COLOR: The Beauty and Science of Color, and Tangible/Intangible.