Tradition, Reinterpreted

Bryce Richter

This isn’t your typical henna design — and it’s not intended to be. Students created the henna body art during a workshop with Meeta Mastani, UW–Madison’s fall 2016 interdisciplinary artist-in-residence, on the outdoor terrace of the Humanities Building. Mastani is an internationally known print-and-dye artist and design specialist who also taught a course in which students experimented with painting, printing, and dyeing in non-toxic colors before learning to drape the resulting fabrics. The class culminated in a December dance performance incorporating the freshly-made fabrics.