Established in 2020, EcoCreative Cluster has been focusing on natural dyes, pigments and the use of natural materials in creative practices. Grounded in the creation and ongoing cultivation of a community dye garden at The Rockfield Centre in Oban, it provides workshops and learning opportunities for the local community, led by textile artist Deborah Gray and invited tutors. The project also has an international network weaving dimension led by curator Naoko Mabon, including collaborations and online conversation series with practitioners across the world.

While deeply rooted in Oban, the Conversations With Artists series has been weaving a wider network of practitioners through holding a space for intercultural exchanges and critical discussions. To date, we have invited 17 artists/groups from 14 locations across the globe, all of whom engage with nature-based local materials and/or natural dye techniques in their practices. Not only producing fascinating dyes and dyed works, invited practitioners are using the creative process of natural dyeing to address local or broader issues, leading to a meaningful social change.

Season 1 (2021) Playlist: https://tinyurl.com/r4u89yxn
・Deborah Gray (Oban, Scotland)
・Monica Haddock (Isle of Mull, Scotland)
・Fernanda Mascarenhas (São Paulo, Brazil)
・Nanako Suzuki (Yubari, Japan)
・Boubacar Doumbia (Ségou, Mali)
*There was a dye garden planning session (private event) and an artist’s talk (public event) led by Lucille Junkere also carried out during the first season of the project, but no recordings are available for those events.

Season 2 (2022) Playlist: https://tinyurl.com/bdhk84y
・Thomas Keyes (Cromarty, Scotland)
・Jessica Giannotti (Oban, Scotland)
・Susan Martin (Pembrokeshire, Wales)
・Living Blue (Rangpur, Bangladesh)
・Firew Konjo (Arba Minch, Ethiopia)
・Katie West (Noongar Ballardong country)

Season 3 (2024) Playlist: https://tinyurl.com/5xd96vvw
・Lyndsey McDougall (Ards Peninsula, Northern Ireland)
・Rosalinda Tay (San Juan La Laguna, Guatemala)

Season 4 (2026) Playlist: https://tinyurl.com/ycxenkk5
・Timothy Siachibuye from Twaabane Creative Centre & Banji Chona and her youth- and women-led initiative Inkaya Studio (Zambia)
・Trees4Trees & Sodiqin (Kampung Laut, Indonesia)

Special thanks to those who have supported this online series:
Kase Juliana; Gil Gosch; Shimizusawa Project; Tiécoura N’Daou; Cheick Hamala Toure; Sahelien; Hannah Gray; Francesca Zappia; Leslie Mabon; CHARTS; Carol Alison Smith; Actuality Abroad; and Gladhys Elliona.