A certified dyeing training course, lasting 25 hours, took place between March 16th and 21st at VAGA – Art and Knowledge Space, with the participation of 13 trainees. This initiative was from the Azores Craft and Design Center (CADA), through the Azores Craft Lab project in partnership with the Azores Qualification Center. The training was led by artisan Manuela Meneses. The trainees had the opportunity to discover the secrets of dye plants and pigments, as well as their colors and tones when applied to various fibers and fabrics, such as linen, cotton, wool, corn fiber, banana fiber, and silk. While the Azores Craft Lab – Innovation, Arts and Crafts facilities are not yet fully operational, the training courses will continue to be held thanks to partnerships with various institutions that support the project. One such example is VAGA, which hosted this initiative promoted by CADA.

The desire now remains to further deepen knowledge about the chemistry of colors and their variations when applied to vegetable fibers and fabrics of different natural fibers.

The dynamics resulting from the training undertaken by the Azores Craft Lab – Innovation, Arts and Crafts project, particularly in the area of ​​vegetable fibers, allowed the dissemination of artisanal knowledge by one of the trainees who organized a workshop on Cattail– a vegetable fiber abundant on our island – at the School of Ponta Garça.

The activity, part of the Ponta Garça School's Cultural Week, which this year took place between March 23rd and 27th under the motto "Explore, Create and Learn," involved the participation of two seventh-grade classes and two eighth-grade classes.

This week, full of activities related to arts, sciences and traditions, aims to bring the school community closer to civil society. In this sense, handicrafts, being bearers of a rich identity and economic value with entrepreneurial potential, proved to be an added value by showing these young people how such common materials can be used to create such unique pieces.