Earth, Sky, Indigo and Rust

Gualala Arts’ Dolphin Gallery presents Earth, Sky, Indigo & Rust, an exhibit that celebrates the expressive possibilities of fiber, dye, and surface design. This two‑artist show brings together the work of textile artist Jennie Lee Henderson and Shibori and indigo specialist Suzanne da Rosa, whose collaborative explorations have led them into richly layered territory shaped by rust, tannins, indigo, and inventive resist techniques.  

 Jennie Henderson, textile art has always been her most natural language. An award‑winning weaver, she has exhibited her work locally, nationally, and internationally. Her fiber arts journey began in high school, when she designed, sewed, and sold hand‑dyed clothing. Over the years she has created both wearable pieces and wall art, continually expanding her mastery of the many techniques that bring art to cloth and paper.

Jennie describes herself as someone who “has always had art inside of her trying to get out.” Her curiosity has led her through a wide range of mediums—ceramics, serigraphy, etching, surface and textile design, papermaking, eco‑printing, basketry, felting, and weaving. No matter how far she roams, her creative path consistently circles back to fiber arts, where she finds her deepest connection.

A pivotal moment came when Jennie met and teamed up with Suzanne da Rosa, an accomplished Shibori artist and indigo dyer. Their partnership opened a new chapter of experimentation. Working with rust, tannins, indigo, and a variety of resist processes, Jennie has pushed her artistic expression into fresh and unexpected directions, embracing the interplay of earth‑based materials and traditional dye techniques.

Suzanne da Rosa, a skilled Shibori practitioner and indigo dyer, Suzanne da Rosa brings a deep understanding of traditional dye processes to the collaboration. Her work highlights the beauty of pattern, repetition, and the expressive qualities of indigo. Together, she and Jennie explore how natural reactions—rust blooming on cloth, tannins shifting tone, indigo settling into fiber- can become powerful artistic tools.

She has exhibited work in the Shetland Museum’s Knitting in the Round exhibition as well as in numerous fiber‑arts shows. She has twice walked across Spain and spent years living and traveling throughout Mexico, where she advocated for folk artisans and produced a documentary on the tin workers of San Miguel de Allende. At home on the Mendocino Coast, she can often be found experimenting with indigo dyeing and Shibori, carving linoleum blocks from old family photographs, working with plant fibers, making lake pigments, researching family genealogy, gardening, and exploring the natural world around her.

Earth, Sky, Indigo and Rust opens Saturday, February 13 from 1-3 pm, exhibit March 7 at the Dolphin Gallery in downtown Gualala.