Conference organizers Dominique Cardon (left) and Anne de la Sayette (right) at the podium.

We are now three days into the ISEND Natural Dye Conference. It has been an intense and rewarding experience. Here are some brief highlights – we can’t possibly hope to cover it all, so if you have any other news from the conference, or if you are covering it in a blog of your own, hit us in the comments section and we’ll add your link. Perhaps the best way to get a sense of what is going on at the conference is to check out the ISEND videos page - almost as good as being here.

2011 Maiwa Textile Symposium Workshop
Gaye Hansen
(Maiwa Loft - Net Loft Granville Is.)

September 27 - 30 (Tue - Fri) 10am - 4pm
Maiwa East - 1310 Odlum Dr., Canada Class Limit 14

2011 Maiwa Textile Symposium Workshop
Gaye Hansen
(Maiwa Loft - Net Loft Granville Is.)
$175 (Includes $50 Lab Fee)    Two full days - Class Limit 12

2011 Maiwa Textile Symposium Workshop
Michele Wipplinger
(Maiwa Loft - Net Loft, Granville Is.)
$495 (Includes $150 Lab Fee)    Five full days - Class Limit 16
September 19 - 23 (Mon - Fri) 10am - 4pm

2011 Maiwa Textile Symposium Workshop
Izabela Sauer
(Maiwa East - 1310 Odlum Dr.)
$295 (Includes $70 Lab Fee)    Three full days - Class Limit 14
September 24 - 26 (Sat - Mon) 10am - 4pm

Our destination: La Rochelle, on the west coast of France.

For the ISEND 2011 UNESCO Natural Dye Conference.

This is the first time that our line of naturally-dyed clothing will be on display outside of Canada. We've done up six mannequin's for the exhibition hall and shipped fourteen boxes to France for the show. At ISEND we will be presenting our documentary In Search of Lost Colour, and Maiwa Owner, Charllotte Kwon, will be one of the presenters. Her talk will focus on marketing natural dyes and some of the paradoxes that might arise when the needs of marketers conflict with some of the most important aspects of natural dyes.

2011 Maiwa Textile Symposium Workshop
Susan Shie
(Maiwa East - 1310 Odlum Dr.)
$495 (Includes $70 Lab Fee)    Five full days - Class Limit 14
In this five-day class students will begin with a “page” of white cotton fabric, then, through a variety of techniques, create diary paintings for quilting.

Each day the class will start by choosing an optional theme together. The theme may then be worked up in a sketchbook to come up with ideas for the day’s work.

$195 (Includes $45 Lab Fee)    Two full days - Class Limit 14 

2011 Maiwa Textile Symposium Workshop
Michele Wipplinger
(Maiwa East - 1310 Odlum Dr.)
$295 (Includes $85 Lab Fee)    One night and two full days - Class Limit 16
This three-day class is designed to help the student understand the rich assortment of colour that can be gathered and brewed from the earth’s crust. Central to this workshop are the black dyes found in West Africa. Muds from the Niger River give lasting dark shades and provide the distinctive ground of textiles from this region.

2011 Maiwa Textile Symposium Workshop
Charllotte Kwon
(Maiwa East - 1310 Odlum Dr.)
$395 (Includes $100 Lab Fee)    Four full days - Class Limit 16
What magic does the dyer use to coax colour from nature? Throughout the world this knowledge was guarded carefully, and learning the art often involved elaborate ceremonies and traditions. To this day, natural dyeing retains the same air of mystery and exotic intrigue that has compelled artists and craftspeople for centuries.

$195 (Includes $30 Lab Fee)    Two full days - Class Limit 14 

2011 Maiwa Textile Symposium Workshop
Michael Brennand-Wood
(Maiwa Loft - Net Loft Granville Is.)

2011 Maiwa Textile Symposium Workshop
Michael Brennand-Wood
(Maiwa Loft - Net Loft Granville Is.)
$250 (Includes $30 Lab Fee)    Two full days - Class Limit 12  

We will post the full descriptions, dates, and price here on the Maiwa Blog.

Once they are posted here they will also appear on the website.

Our printed calendar should be in the mail at the end of May.

We are very excited about 2011 and hope to see you

at a workshop, event, or lecture.

We've been working with Jan and Laxmi on Banjara embroidery. Our work of the day complete, we drove the short distance to one of the temple sites that have made Hampi a protected UNESCO site. As we pulled up, the fierce sun of the day was gone and in it's place was a gathering dusk. It brought a sense of calm and quiet that was only matched by our wonder at the marvel of the temples.