The Diversity of Indigo - Essay Example

Full Teachers The Diversity of Indigo (various methods of dyeing) 20 November Introduction Indigo is a color that is a cross between blue and violet. Its property of being a deep color has been associated with a variety of ideas and perceptions such as being closely related to spirituality (in religious practices), as the preferred color of royalty (hence the term of royal is blue blood or very dark red to be virtually or almost similar to color of indigo), and also of intuition (especially in practices of the occult and sorcery) because of its mysterious color. It is derived from the indigo plant (scientific name is Indigofera tinctoria) that grows wild in many parts of the world. However, India has the longest history of exporting indigo even from ancient times and at one time was also the largest exporter of indigo in the world. It has since been overtaken by other countries such as Mexico, Guatemala, and El Salvador. The invention of synthetic dyes greatly contributed to the decline in the use of natural indigo. However, in more recent times, there has been a romantic longing for the old techniques of indigo dyeing. While industrial-type indigo is used in many practical applications, the natural indigo is used in craftsmanship to create real works and pieces of art. Objects made by traditional techniques of indigo dyeing are of great value as collectors items and hence in great demand. Many ancient civilizations of the world used indigo extensively because of its being color fast and has a unique quality different from other colors. This paper examines and discusses the traditional indigo dyeing techniques of several countries to examine their differences in dyeing. Moreover, the paper will explore the ways of how indigo is unique among all the other colors in more ways than one because indigo used to dye textiles and fabrics is a good indicator of social status and to delineate social hierarchy. Discussion Indigo as a color has by itself several variants such as deep indigo, light indigo, the Persian indigo, Japanese indigo, and about eight other shades or tones (depending on the hue between blue and violet). The global trade in indigo followed the ancient trade routes as it was included in the trade of spices from the East, especially from India. It is perhaps the only dye that has the greatest impact on the world in terms of commerce, slavery, and age of empires. The fortunes of colonial countries rose and fell with the price fluctuations of indigo as an item of trade or commodity. This because blue dye was once very rare and difficult to procure such that it had great value to the planters and traders who engaged in the sale of indigo to other countries in Europe. Indigo as a colorant was mainly used on fabrics and textiles made mostly of cotton to produce denim pants. In earlier times, its demand came from the armies who used indigo to produce the bright colored uniforms for their soldiers and group insignias. The preparation and extraction of indigo dye was once very labor intensive. First, its leaves are packed into tanks filled with water to undergo a process of fermentation. This early part of the processing is done by bacteria and after a few hours, the leaves are saturated with the water and fermentation begins which can take about one day but the process must closely be monitored to such precision by tasting the liquid if it has become sweet and also by smell (Arsenault 70). When the ideal taste and smell is attained, then the water is drained. The remaining liquid is called indican which is a white slightly transparent material; this material contains the amino acid called indoxyl. It is then stirred continuously to promote oxidation which is the second step of the process of extraction. The liquid turns to yellowish-brown and allowed to rest so the indigo globules can settle to the bottom of the tank as sludge. The remaining water is drained and the mixture is filtered some more and then it is dried to form the so-called indigo cake and cut into small squares. It is packed and ready for sale. A. Japan – the indigo plant is native to the tropics (hot and dry climate) but some of its species can also grow in sub-tropical areas of the world such as in Japan and Taiwan where the weather is much colder but this is a different plant (scientific name is Strobilanthes cusia) that produces an indigo of another hue known as Japanese indigo. This plant grows primarily in the Ryukyu Islands of Japan but another indigo plant that grows in the Tokushima region of Japan (previously called as the Awa Region) is the Persicaria tinctoria. Indigo was used in Japan mainly to put beautiful designs into the Japanese costume of the kimono. Awa indigo is much superior to industrial or synthetic indigo because it has a lower diffusion rate and also in dye penetration rate as found out in a laboratory experiment (Kawahito & Yasukawa 662). Techniques – the Japanese as detailed in the said experiment mentioned above prefer to have their indigo dye be of higher or superior quality based on four criteria which are the following: brightness, running, unevenness, and fading. This running of the color is especially important in Japanese culture because they consider such quality as part of aesthetic beauty in their overall design on textiles, silk, and fabrics used in making kimonos. The running of the color is done intentionally and natural indigo that produces it is thought as pure beauty. The other quality of unevenness is also important in terms of tastefulness (ibid. 663). The Japanese had perfected the art of the so-called resist-dyeing technique in which thread bundles are covered with dye-resistant material (hence the term of resist dyeing called in Japanese as kasuri) to produce beautiful abstract or geometric designs on the resulting cloth or fabric used to make futon covers, sleeping blankets, and jackets (Krauss 1). The resulting designs form into what is termed as picture-kasuri or the equivalent of a tapestry in a Western context like those made from the late Middle Ages. The Japanese dyers refined the techniques depending on the material used to prevent the dye from fully penetrating, such as itajime, the bingata, rozome, tsutsugake, kasuri, and shibori that results in beautifully-design cloths. Materials – the Japanese use fresh indigo leaves to produce lighter shade of blue dye but often they use the same technique of soaking fresh leaves in water to ferment. However, another technique they had uniquely developed is the fermentation of dried indigo leaves for a period of up to ninety days to produce a dye that is of a deeper blue hue. Indigo dyeing used in Japanese arts and crafts is a vanishing skills with only a few artists really capable of doing a real ikat because this task is labor-intensive and very time-consuming. This craftsmanship requires a lot of patience and plenty of persistence; it is an ancient skill that fast disappearing and nearing extinction. The blue derived from indigo dye is the most widely used color in Japan (Hibi & Fukuda 28) and is also applied in other items like candles and porcelain vases. Indeed the Japanese elevated this art form into something highly complex (Jacquard 3). B. China – the Chinese had developed dye making independently and were using the indigo dye as early as Shang and Zhou dynasties going back to the early sixteenth century B. C. E. (before currrent era). The use of dye in China predated that of Japanese dye usage. It is used differently in a sociological context because primary colors such as indigo were used to delineate social classes and political hierarchy. The royalty used primary colors like red, blue, yellow, black, and white; these colors were deemed as colors fit for the nobility only and also members of the upper and privileged classes of ancient Chinese society (Tsang 6) while other secondary colors were considered for use by the lower classes as a social stratification. There was likewise a lot of symbolism attached to the use of colors in ancient China. Warm and vibrant colors like yellow and red were used to indicate high birth, extravagance, opulence, and royal upbringing. The secondary colors were reserved for the working masses together with the type of coarse materials intended for manual labor such hemp, ramie, and cotton (ibid.). The royals and members of privileged classes used fine silk and other materials which were smooth and comfortable to wear often inlaid with intricate designs. Techniques – the ancient Chinese developed a different approach to using indigo dye in their fabrics. The technique was primarily that of pattern-dye which includes various styles or sub-techniques depending on the materials such as tie-dye, wax resist, clamp resist, and paste resist (some of these techniques were probably copied by the Japanese as their culture and values were mostly derived from China to include the use of chopsticks with rounded end and Confucian concepts of filial piety, social order, compassion for fellow human beings, etc.) but the Chinese had enhanced these dyeing techniques with other means such as embroidery, applique, stamping, printing, and painting (ibid.) to exhibit a more refined culture. Materials – the indigo plant grows in many parts of China hence indigo was widely available even during those early times. The indigo dye was used on clothing materials such as hemp, cotton, linen, and silk in their ascending order of desirability based on the rankings attached to the type of material used. The fastness of indigo as a coloring dye was shown in the discovery of a piece of silk more than two thousand years old from an excavated tomb at Mawandue in the city of Changsha in Hunan Province. Indigo dyeing in China as an art form was indicative of the tribe or ethnic group that did it because these served as sort of their art signature (Perkins 107) which served the same function of other cultural artifacts such as the famous art of Chinese cuisine which is reflective of the region where it originated. C. Africa – this continent had its own version and history of using indigo dye. It was used to dye the clothing worn by members of the African royalty and also of certain tribes like the Tuareg nomads of the Sahara desert who uses them for their turbans or headdress for the males. Other tribes prefer a very deep color of indigo to almost look like black already. Most Africans who used indigo dye knew how to apply the tied-resist pattern that is also called as ikat (Jacquard 3) and imbue this practice with religious significance or superstitious beliefs. A good example is that of Sierra Leone of western Africa where indigo is tied with its culture. Techniques – the West African method of making indigo dye is vastly different from that found in the other cultures of the world. A significant variation is pounding the leaves to a pulp which makes the process of making indigo dye faster and more even. The indigo leaves had been soaked in water before being pulped but an alkali chemical had been added to it to make the mixture water soluble. The alkali usually used came from wood ash. Fermentation is followed to make the now water-soluble mixture bond more permanently with the threads or fibers of the yarn to be dyed (Catalano-Knaack 14). Dye making in Sierra Leone is closely associated with their established gender roles, with women making the dye while their men do the weaving of the textile. African indigo dye making is therefore a cultural practice. Materials – the specie of indigo plant that is really native to Africa has the scientific name of Philanoptera cyanescens known locally as gara. However, this plant specie is often considered inferior in quality and Africans preferred the imported dye made from the original plant of Indigofera tinctoria. The pioneering Khadijatu used dye made from kola nuts to dip the fabrics in before the same fabrics were also dipped in indigo dye. She experiment with this mixture to obtain different color results in an attempt to explore new ways of using traditional techniques with newer materials. Like elsewhere, traditional indigo dyeing is a dying art. Conclusion The history of indigo is also a remarkable story of the human propensity to invent new things and reflective of the various cultures in the world where it was practiced. In China it was used as a form of social stratification, in Japan to exhibit a remarkable refinement of art and in Africa as a way enhance traditional gender roles. The current romantic longing for the lost art of indigo dyeing is a desire to recover and retain the intricate art forms to which a dye like indigo had been used since early times to the present. Indigo dye as a global commodity had a great impact on the world of trade, of migration patterns, of colonialism, and slavery. Works Cited Arsenault, Theresa, Christopher Rose, et al. “Indigo: From the Devils Dye to Denim.” Explorers, Traders, and Immigrants: Tacking the Cultural and Social Impacts of the Global Commodity Trade. Ed. Natalie Arsenault. Austin, TX, USA: University of Texas Press, 2008. 69-94. Print. Catalano-Knaack, Kathryn Elvira. The Traditions and History of Indigo-dyed Textiles in Sierra Leone as They Relate to the Art and Life of Haja Khadijatu Kamara. Thesis (2012): 1-55. Print. Hibi, Sadao, and Kunio Fukuda. The Colors of Japan. New York, NY, USA: Kodansha International, 2000. Print. Jacquard Products. Indigo Dye Kit: Natural Dye Method. Healdsburg, CA, USA: Rupert, Gibbon & Spider Incorporated, n. d. Print. Kawahito, Miyoko, and Ryoko Yasukawa. “Characteristics of Color Produced by Awa Natural Indigo and Synthetic Indigo.” Materials 2.0 (2009): 661-673. Print. Krauss, Jeffrey. “Ikat, Kasuri, and E-gasuri Background and Techniques.” Japan Information and Culture Center, Washington, D. C., USA (2006): 1-33. Print. Perkins, Dorothy. Encyclopedia of China: The Essential Reference to China, Its History and Culture. Chicago, IL, USA: Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers, 1999. Print. Tsang, Ka Bo. Touched by Indigo: Chinese Blue-and-White Textiles and Embroidery. Ontario, Canada: Royal Ontario Museum, 2005. Print. Due: November 20, 2014 @ 11:30 am Read More