Though Alexander Fals and Hayley Dayis are romantic and creative partners through their group, Foraged Pigment Art, their individual paintings are distinct from each other.
“Because we’re using Colombian paints, I end up painting a lot of Colombian frogs and toucans and birds and people. So, it’s been like a journal entry in some ways, as a white American woman living (in Colombia); it’s a way of learning about and celebrating it because I’m literally using the landscape to paint,” reflects Dayis on some of her art.
“I think our styles are evolving together. It’s been an opportunity, an expression to give attention and give light to the emotional thoughts and feelings that aren’t as prevalent or present in the kind of mainstream rat race experience,” says Fals. “So, we’re wanting to take the opportunity to see moments as magical, life as magical.”
Even with those differences, both artists often find inspiration in scenes of natural beauty. Landscapes or animals are infused with a certain surrealism, operating with their own dreamlike logic. The colors feel like they’re from a similar realm complete with brilliant oranges, yellows, and reds, a striking midnight black, and every shade of brown.
This is because all of Fals’ and Dayis’ paints are made from clay and earth materials collected by the artists themselves. Regularly held workshops in the Finger Lakes region have let the duo pass on their passion for the craft and environmentally sustainable practices.
“I feel really passionate about the ecological elements and I really want to teach more people that it’s possible to make your own art supplies and not have to spend a bunch of money or contribute to all the microplastics in the water streams, which is the thing that keeps me up at night,” Dayis says. “It makes me feel like I’m contributing to something bigger than myself.”
The pigment foraging practice has roots in Fals’ Colombian heritage, where collecting materials from nature for paints is a family tradition. With a background in environmental conservationism, it became even more significant to him when Fals started to pursue art full time.
He points out that foraging pigments is something humans have done since the beginning of existence.
“The first cave paintings were just, you know, mud off of someone’s feet,” Fals says. “The dirt under your feet, the things that people discard or don’t really look at or consider, to flip the script and say, ‘No, that can be art,’ is really powerful.”
Foraging pigments, therefore, is not done with a sense of elitism about “correct” materials or colors in Fals’ mind. Instead, it is an empowering, accessible act that anyone can participate in.
Dayis defines the process for creating pigments as “time consuming” but also “relatively simple and rewarding.” After finding and collecting usable materials, the colors are dried out for a time, then ground into a fine powder. Colorful material is then sifted out and mixed together with water and a safe binding agent to create a usable paint.
“It’s great on the one level of environmental impact but even the process of going out to find these pigments can be inspiring,” she says. “All of my paintings are impacted by the fact that I went out to find the paint and was inspired by that somehow.”
Color hues come down to a local area’s geology, Dayis explains, with volcanic activity contributing to the vibrancy of the Colombian pigments the two artists forage every winter. Sulphur, for example, results in a yellow or green color, iron oxide yields purple, while carbon gives them dark blacks. Regionally, she mentions finding good red material in clay around Seneca Park and mentions wanting to experiment with local shale as well.
Fals and Dayis have a number of Foraged Pigment Arts workshops scheduled in August, including one at Abundance Food Co-op and another at the Cheshire Union in Canandaigua. Their art is also currently on display at Genesee Valley Council on the Arts’ New Deal Gallery, Axom Gallery, and the Williams-Insalaco Gallery Exhibition at Finger Lakes Community College.
Jacob Schermerhorn is a Rochester Beacon contributing writer and data journalist. The Beacon welcomes comments and letters from readers who adhere to our comment policy including use of their full, real name. Submissions to the Letters page should be sent to [email protected].