Rooted in Color - A Conversation with Cara Marie Piazza

Our motto is ‘modifying perspectives.’ How does your work with natural dyes and textiles challenge or shift the way people see color, fashion, or even sustainability?

I never intentionally set out to try to challenge or shift perspective, but my own perspective shift around the origins of color became such a passion of mine, I couldn’t help but want to share it with the world. I feel as though working with natural dyes connects us to our human ancestry — when we worked in collaboration with nature and had more reverence for the world that sustains us. Color is such a ubiquitous part of the human experience for those who can perceive it, that it only makes sense that the sensory experience of color is so intricately linked to the natural world.

I hope that by instilling a sense of awe with my practice, it creates that one little crack in someone’s perspective — to interact with their surroundings in a way that has reverence. When we respect the world around us, I believe we naturally make more sustainable choices.

Modifying perspectives to me means zooming out — viewing the world from a different vantage point that escapes your own narrow lens and considering all the options. I think we live in such a binary society that we forget there are never only two options. Perspectives are more like a prism, with multitudes of angles.

And what does modifying perspectives mean to you?
It means zooming out — viewing the world from a different vantage point that escapes your own narrow lens and considering all the options. I think we live in such a binary society that we forget there are never only two options. Perspectives are more like a prism, with multitudes of angles.

You studied in London, which has a different pace from New York's fast lifestyle. Since natural dyeing is such a slow, meditative process, how do you stay grounded and resist getting pulled into the fast pace of New York?

This is honestly hard for me! I’m a born and bred New Yorker, so running at full speed is my natural state. I joke that this medium found me, and that my whole craft is an exercise in patience. It’s the lesson I am meant to learn in this lifetime. The process is actually what forces me to slow down. I’m also working on a practice of shutting off my phone, social media, and all distractions for at least six hours a week. It seems small, but giving myself unencumbered studio practice and alone time is deeply necessary for my reset. I also try to sit and meditate in the mornings for about 20 minutes and have a journaling practice. My little backyard raised-bed garden is also a gentle moment of rest for me.

Natural dyeing connects to ancient practices — if you could time travel to any historical period or culture to learn about their dyeing methods firsthand, where would you go and why?

I love this question. I have two answers. The first is Ancient Sumer, as it was the birth of our current civilization. The second is my ancestral line of Southern Italy — I’m a fourth-generation Italian American and have been very interested in the herbal and folk medicine traditions of this lineage. Both sets of my parents are from Sicily, Campagna, Calabria, and Puglia, so I’m deeply interested in the dyes and medicines of these regions.

Do you think there’s a color or plant that’s misunderstood or underappreciated? How would you want to give it a new life?

I love, love, and am deeply devoted to the color brown. The nuance of tonality and shade of this hue, I think, gets overlooked. It’s an amalgamation of so many good and rich ingredients — and one of my favorites to master.

What’s a material you’ve always wanted to work with but haven’t yet — either because it’s hard to source or because it feels intimidating?

Mushrooms! I think I know once I open that can of worms, there’s no going back. It’s an entirely new species of dye that I would love to devote proper attention and care to.

What is the most recent technique or innovation in natural dyeing that you’ve learned or discovered?

There are a lot of amazing scientists working with bacteria as a new dye source. This could be the future of commercializing a more sustainable dye. This, and mycelial dyes.

How do you see the future of natural dyeing — do you believe it can be successfully scaled and commercialized?

I don’t think it should be. That might sound antithetical to my practice, but I actually don’t believe we should “scale” anything anymore. We have enough on the planet to provide for everyone on Earth, so there’s no need to apply a local, delicate, and intricate practice to a system that is inherently extractive and exploitative. A large fast fashion company could wipe out an entire species of dye plant if it's not a regenerative source of dye.

I think we can reframe the way we think of scale and decentralize the need to homogenize and produce. I love the concept of multi-localism by Ezio Manzini — and would love to see many different dye houses working together for a large brand to create regional collections. But brands would need to adopt new quality control measures that don’t rely so heavily on uniformity across their styles.

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