spoils : march ‘22
Spoils is a deep purple-red ochre with natural mica sparkles found along the Boyd River near Bath, England, at the now empty site of an abandoned ochre works that once took up part of the valley. The ochre was once used for industrial purposes, such as for making paint for iron bridges, to prevent rust (one iron oxide to prevent other iron oxidising…).
Once this valley was a centre of industrial processes, shipping colour internationally. Now it is an abandoned post-industrial wasteland, rather beautiful, full of wild bee hives, river walks, and crumbling hidden brick walls. Of all the UK’s colours, it is the one closest to my heart.
contributor: Caroline Ross
About Caro: Caroline Ross is an artist living and working in Bournemouth, England. She teaches wild materials and is writing a guide to making natural watercolour paints, which will be published in 2023 with Search Press. She forages and finds what she needs both in nature and from what people discard, with a particular emphasis on reusing so-called waste and esteeming that which is commonplace or overlooked.
Photo courtesy of Caroline Ross.