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The WOVEN 2023 festival, a celebration of innovation in textiles across the district, has announced its “Growing Colour Together” campaign, which will launch a bid for Kirklees to become the UK’s largest ever dye garden.

Initiated and funded by Kirklees Council, “Growing Colour Together” and WOVEN focus on generations of innovators, connecting the district’s strong textiles heritage with cutting edge developments in industrial production, university research and the creative expression of the area’s rich and diverse communities.

“Growing Colour Together” aims to create a district-wide, natural dye garden in Kirklees this summer, specifically focused on development in three areas of the district: Dewsbury; Kirkburton and Birkby; and Fartown.

The garden spaces will offer a sustainable, natural means of growing plants that produce dye to be used on textiles and educating those involved about the importance of sustainability within the textiles industry.

Cherry Styles, Nicola Perren, Jane Howroyd, Seiko Kinoshita, Natalie Walton, Michaela Lesayova, Elnaz Yazdani, Waheeda Kothdiwala and Natalie Linney, who are all part of the project

Coun Will Simpson, cabinet member for culture at Kirklees Council, said: “’Growing Colour Together’ focuses on growing plants which traditionally have provided natural dyes used in the textile industry.

"The project provides a range of great opportunities for Kirklees - to promote the fascinating stories of our district’s textile heritage, to increase awareness about caring for nature and to bring people together to express their creativity.

"Our region has a great artistic talent and engagement, and I look forward to seeing the creations which come out of ‘Growing Colour Together’.

“The project also encourages people to work outdoors, which has known health and well-being benefits, and our local area will benefit from improving the environment to create new colour gardens.

Foraging for the 'Growing Colour Together' project

"The project is a wonderful example of how we can use Kirklees’ heritage stories to inspire beneficial activity today and deliver the community aspirations of the council’s heritage strategy, which will be launched later in 2023.

"We would like to thank Arts Council England for supporting this innovative project.”

In Dewsbury, the artists selected to work with the community on the project include Jane Howroyd, whose interest in natural dyeing started more than 20 years ago when she first became interested in historical dyeing processes, and Waheeda Kothdiwala, a project worker at S2R, facilitating creative, outdoor and well-being workshops.

'Growing Colour Together’: Launch of campaign for Kirklees to become the UK’s biggest dye garden as part of WOVEN 2023 festival