Botanical Watercolors for Youth (Ages 14+) – 3-Hour WorkshopIn this hands-on workshop, students develop their own botanical painting palettes using fruits, onion skins, and mica minerals. Designed for youth ages 14 and up, the session emphasizes working with non-toxic, accessible materials—encouraging participants to explore pigment sources found in their own kitchens and backyards.The workshop begins with an introduction to Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), followed by a discussion on ethical foraging practices for materials such as blueberries, raspberries, and onion skins. Students learn how to safely and responsibly collect and prepare these natural resources.

 

A key focus of the session is documentation. Participants are taught the importance of detailed note-taking to ensure color consistency and reproducibility. This includes recording precise measurements using a scale, simmering times, ratios of anti-fungal agents, and the total time required to produce each dye. Through hands-on experimentation, students discover that onions (Allium cepa) vary in type and that their skins—often discarded—contain valuable phytochemicals such as quercetin and pelargonidin. These compounds produce a range of colors, which can shift depending on the use of mordants. Onion skins are also rich in tannins and are considered a “direct” (substantive) natural dye, meaning they can be used effectively without a mordant. The workshop also introduces gum arabic, including the origin of its name and its role as a binder in watercolor paint. Students use a glass muller to grind and refine their pigments, gaining a deeper understanding of the traditional techniques used to create sustainable, handmade painting palettes.