Pigments from the Wild

Processing river rocks into pigment.

24/07/24 Nomadic Studio

Hopping off the concrete path, I am currently embarking on self-initiated solo residencies around the world, setting my nomadic studio in-touch with diverse cultures and natural environments.

On my journey, I am collecting, researching, and processing pigments from the wild to ground painting back down to Earth.

 
 

Processing seashells into pigment.

18/02/25 Biomaterial Experiment

Walks along the seashore lead to questions of material.

As the tide recedes, an abundance of seashells remain washed ashore. In my research, I find that this biomaterial is composed of calcium carbonate (CaCO3), secreted by marine mollusks as hard exoskeletons to protect and support their soft bodies.(1)

I collect fragments of seashells to experiment with crushing them into pigments. The non-uniform particles add a natural texture to the paint and create a slight pearlescent effect as they reflect and refract light in subtly differing directions.

Source:
(1) https://www.britannica.com/science/seashell 

 
processKanny Yeung