Today we’d like to introduce you to Riley Douglas. Them and their team share their story with us below:
Riley received her undergrad from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, where she studied printmaking and art history. for a few years, she ran a Gig poster company with her best pal Ashlee Mays. A few years into this she started to realize the impact she was having on the environment by using harmful chemicals daily.
Not to mention the amount of paper, ink, fibers, and resources taken in by the process of screen printing. Riley took a break from Chicago when she took a position at Arrowmont School of Art and Craft in 2017 as a work-study. During that time, she took very diverse courses, woodworking, painting, and Eco printing taught by Lotta Helleberg. This experience was life-changing and soon Riley moved from the midwest to the Appalachian mountains.
Then silk and Tulle were Founded in 2018 and are owned by Riley Douglas. Riley’s practice delves into the history of Appalachian craft and building natural dye gardens. She is a Board Member of the Museum of Infinite Outcomes, and a certified Master Gardener from The University of Tennessee with a specialty in growing, harvesting and manipulating dye plants. Riley’s personal and professional practices focus on a maker’s role in creating sustainable methodologies and lifestyles.
During the pandemic, she took on a new project of serving with Knoxville Community Development Corporation as Knoxville Community Development Coordinator, working with low-income and elderly housing to teach garden-to-table gardening and creative workshops like dying with kitchen scraps, container gardening for a limited time, and/or mobility, and gardening for your health.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
One thing that I will never forget, and I am still struggling with today, is the idea that, as a nation, we sign up children for a lifetime of debt and work without them fully understanding the weight of their decisions.
Maybe it was just my personal experiences, but in 2014 when I got a half scholarship to one of the top art schools in the nation at the time, I was excited and hopeful. My parents were proud, and I thought my life was about to change for the better… In some ways, it did. But I am not sure to this day if college was the right choice for me. By the time I left school, I was angry and heartbroken.
In many ways, my financial experience during school ruined my opportunities and outlook of how getting a BFA could better my life. I spent four years working at least two jobs, being tired in school, not having time for homework, and being compared to other students who had finical freedoms and privileges. It was never something addressed during my time in school and being the first person in my family to go to a four-year college. I thought I was doing all the right things.
I enjoyed my professors (most), and I am very grateful for the resources I could access through school. Still, there were many shortcomings and no one really to hold my hand through the financial side of signing up for 90,000 dollars of debt – I tried to get further funding by applying for jobs in the school.
Still, I could never access them, maybe because of my dyslexia or maybe because the school had such a competitive job placement. I lost faith after getting locked out of campus the last year before my graduation because I could not apply for any more federal or private loans for my final year – I had maxed out my and my family’s debt ceiling.
SAIC let me walk, but they did not grant me my degree till this past year, four years later. In 2020 my dear uncle passed away from cancer. He was supportive and always hoped that I would do great things. He left me the remaining balance of what I owed the school in his will. I am very thankful and privileged for that.
But it is bittersweet to own my degree under this circumstance finally. Dept, education, privilege, should not come to you for such a high price.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
Riley’s Work Focuses on sustainability and developing a relationship with the world around her. At the Museum of Infinite Outcomes, she spends seasons growing her natural dyes to extract color and study plant chemistry.
She raises a vast array of colors, from deep indigo blues to bright goldenrod yellows. She enjoys her time outside and loves to create colors through the seasons – allowing the natural world to express itself as it ebbs and flows. She enjoys foraging natural colors from her neighborhoods, parks, and forgotten places (like highway solders or parking lots).
Riley thoroughly enjoys her relationships with plants, and as he collects colors, she grows a deeper appreciation for biodiversity and always the surprises nature offers through color.
How do you define success?
Riley Defines success by her impact. She would like her work to allow people to think more thoughtfully about the objects, art, plants, consumption, slow fashion, craft, and everyday interactions with the more than human world.
However, making a living as a maker would be a great privilege. She doesn’t want to sacrifice sustainable practices for the production of the dollar.
Contact Info:
- Email: silkandtulle1@gmail.com
- Website: Silkandtulle.com
- Instagram: silkandtulle
