Helen Coleman honoured to be first artist-in-residence at revamped Narrogin and Dryandra Visitor Centre

Helen Coleman’s upcoming residency at the Narrogin and Dryandra Visitor Centre marks a historic occasion for the new creative space and the shire. Coleman will be the first artist to spend time at the centre, which was officially opened in October last year, and her ties to the Wheatbelt South will make the inaugural residency extra special. “It’s an honour to be the first,” she said. “I was born in Narrogin and mum’s still there, I’ve still got a strong connection to the art community in Narrogin and I’ve done quite a bit of work in the Dryandra State Forest so it’s lovely to be so close to that again.” Coleman spent two years as artist-in-residence at Mandurah’s Contemporary Art Space and she will spend the month of February in Narrogin investigating the natural dye properties of Marri gum. “It’s about 70 per cent tannin and it’s a fantastic dye,” she said. “It was also used to tan leather — I’m doing a PhD exploring the chemistry and dye properties of it and working with artists to try to develop a natural dye industry in the southwest of WA.” While in Narrogin, Coleman is permitted to collect Marri gum in Foxes Lair to try to quantify how much gum can be collected from a tree. “I’ll be bringing the gum back to the residency space and doing dye experiments,” she said. “The public is welcome to come and have a look and have a cuppa and a chat. “I’m really keen to talk to anybody in the community that has any stories or knows about the history of the tannin industry or experiments with natural dye.” Coleman has undertaken significant research into the history of WA’s tannin industry as part of her study. “It’s absolutely fascinating,” she said. “People look at the trees now and have no idea what an important industry it was. We’re incredibly lucky that we’ve still got State forests.” Coleman’s investigation into natural dyes is geared towards sustainably building an under-developed Australian textile industry amid growing push-back against fast fashion. “People are starting to think more about where their clothing is coming from and how it’s being made,” she said. “There is demand here for stuff that is really good quality and locally made, particularly Indigenous fashion, but there just aren’t the suppliers yet.” The intersection of culture, clothing and place is also important to Coleman. “It’s a real genuine connection to Noongar country,” she said. “It’s also part of the slow movement, to buy quality and buy less, to appreciate how things are made and know the maker and support locally made products — I think it’s got a big potential, not just for textiles but as an art material as well.” Marri gum, for example, can be collected from trees without causing damage. “It’s the most incredible natural resource,” Coleman said. “The world is interested in new dyes and Australian fashion — I think it’s got a bright future.” Coleman will be running an Introduction to Natural Inks Workshop on February 24 and an Earth Pigments and Natural Paints Workshop on February 25 at Arts Narrogin. Booking information for the workshops is available via Eventbrite.