Presented at Gravitypope, ‘Irresistible Indigo’ is a window installation by block printer and experimental textile artist Hyunjung Lee.

All around the world, indigo dyers incorporate unique dyeing techniques to create distinctive textiles. Their mastery of the process allows the maker to constantly innovate and push the boundaries. Once the craft is mastered, the maker becomes a mediator between concept and process.The artist’s unique creative characteristics, inspirations, and understanding of materials and process, become imprinted by the visual elements in the finished piece.

Through research and experimentation, Hyunjung Lee explores her reinvented indigo resist techniques taking inspiration from indigo dyers across the globe. The series showcase Hyunjung Lee’s textiles, repeatedly dipped in indigo to achieve a deep blue that creates a strong contrast with her resisted motifs evoking the harmony of curves and straight lines. The philosophies behind creating the motifs come from Hyunjung’s cultural identity.

Hyunjung’s ancestors dyed clothes to reflect the colours of nature. Their ultimate goal was to live in harmony with nature in every aspect of their lives. Indigo, although a dyeing process that requires a lot of patience, is the most well known and loved by the people.The aesthetic of the roof resembles a ridge of a mountain, and the curves in sleeves and the linear details of clothes express the harmony between curvilinear and straight lines. Hyunjung hopes the audience gazes on the tenderness of lines reminiscent of nature and immerses themselves in the deep calming blue.