Artists Embrace Experiencing Color Through Thought Forms

The invisible worlds around Philadelphia-based artists Bixa Burgos and Dan Cole inspire them, but what drives the passion behind their art is color.

Not the shades found on a traditional palette. In fact, the vibrant hues they favor aren’t obvious to the naked eye. Bixa and Dan work with plants and flowers to extract pigments that can be used as natural dyes on linen, their favorite surface, or cotton.

“There’s something so grounding about the experience of seeing colors when you work with plants,” Bixa said. “There’s almost this understanding between your human eye and this plant color that feels like you’re in communication with the natural world.”

Exploring the energy of plant-based color and translating it to canvas is behind their business Thought Forms, which also borrows from theosophist Annie Besant and a book by the same name. The book explores the idea of “though forms” – energetic patterns in nature shaped by human consciousness. In their paintings, Dan and Bixa strive to reflect the life energy of the dye plants harvested for their work.

Both embrace an ancient practice that “emerged from a lot of intersecting interests we already had,” Bixa said. They began dating six years ago and initially built furniture together. A workshop in upstate New York led by designer/author Katrina Rodabaugh introduced them to the living light of other worlds.

“We were walking around and harvesting black walnut hulls and goldenrod and willow bark off the ground, and we started to get a basic understanding of how to work with plant dyes,” Bixa said.

It wasn’t long after that Bixa accepted a job at Lancaster-based Green Matters Dye Company, which brings pollution-free color to the textile and fashion industries through commercial plant dye application. Winona Quigley, CEO and founder of the company, became a mentor to Bixa and Dan, who have their studio at the same site as the company.

Nothing is quick about extracting color from plants or preparing the fiber to receive the color. The variables are endless. For the color to properly bond and last over time, the fiber undergoes a series of mineral baths.

“It’s like bringing garments or paintings through a fabric spa,” said Bixa, who adds that water quality matters, too. Rainwater collects in a 60,000-gallon cistern under the studio.

“That’s ideal because rain is a natural filter for minerals,” Bixa said.

As for the dyes, Bixa compares extracting color to making a cup of tea. “We’re pretty much making teas out of raw plant material. Some plants need higher temperature, some need lower temperature to extract the color.”

What makes the process magical can also lead to minor frustration. “You’ll never really get the same color again,” Bixa said.

Even the rolls of linen vary depending on how the fibers used to weave the canvas were grown. Same goes for the plants. What was the water like to grow the plants? “Even if you’re working in the studio and it’s a cloudy day versus a sunny day, that can affect how the color develops. There’s such an aliveness to what we do.”

It’s an energy that cannot be duplicated with synthetic colors.

Their studio is an industrial space and includes two indigo vats that are constantly maintained to ensure the pH is optimal. Bonds form between the fabric and the dye over several hours. Indigo vats create a remarkable variety of blue and green hues, shades that oxidize when exposed to air. The depth of the shade is achieved through consecutive dips into the vat.

The art Dan and Bixa create features gradients of plant-derived color that produce an energy that highlights both the different colors in plants and what Bixa calls, “the sensational experience of witnessing them.”

“We are really interested in trying to keep the mood of the pieces tightly curated,” Dan said.  “With two minds involved, we could be venturing off into all sorts of directions, but it has been a creative challenge to try focus the mood of our pieces. We are establishing our core visual vocabulary so we can venture further with a firm idea of what our style is.”

What sounds complex is simple to the pair that recently celebrated six years together.

“We just love color,” Bixa said. “It’s a really emotional quality of a piece of art. Color harmony creates emotional harmony. In our art practice, there’s something grounding about seeing the colors extracted from plants.”

While their website contains multiple examples of their work and photos of the process, it’s best viewed in person. “There’s so much to see and honestly there’s a lot to smell,” Bixa said. “It’s really a sensory experience.”

Dan and Bixa show at a handful of events in the MidAtlantic Region and fell in love with their first Rose Squared Show, Fall Brookdale Park, last year.

They’ll be back at both Brookdale Shows in 2025. Find them at Spring Brookdale Park (June 21-22) and Fall Brookdale Park (Oct. 18-19).