The Mushroom Color Atlas is a resource and reference for everyone curious about mushrooms and the beautiful and subtle colors derived from dyeing with mushrooms. But it is also the start of a journey and a point of departure, introducing you to the kaleidoscopic fungi kingdom and our connection to it.
My hope is that through this Atlas everyone will be inspired to learn more about the mycological world, and begin to understand the importance of the networks, connections and symbiotic relationships that live in our forests. Most importantly, understanding our impact on these delicate networks and our role as stewards of the land, bringing positive change to our local environments and our planet.
Available from award-winning publisher Chronicle Books, The Mushroom Color Atlas is a comprehensive primer on the universe of colors lurking inside fungi. Illustrated by Yuli Gates.
Equal parts art book, field guide, and color distillation workshop, The Mushroom Color Atlas is a timeless reference that will be used in the studios of artists and designers for years to come. Consider it your invitation to share in the kaleidoscopic wonder of the fungi kingdom!
- “This stunning book is the result of years of creative experimentation. Mushrooms are chemical wizards and Julie Beeler is a masterful guide to the spectrum of pigments they can make. I have spent many happy moments lost in the fungal colourscapes contained in this exquisitely produced volume.” – Merlin Sheldrake, author of Entangled Life
People are learning all about the pivotal role fungi play in ecosystems and conservation efforts, plus spending time foraging has become a popular activity. The Mushroom Color Atlas features beautiful botanical illustrations and clear instructions on how to find and positively identify more than two dozen color-filled mushroom species in the wild.
Join artist, mycophile, and educator Julie Beeler in the forest and in her studio as she shows you how to create vivid dyes and pigments from mushrooms. This attractive guide covers the entire process, from foraging and species identification, to preparing the fungi and fiber, to producing lustrous dyes, paints, and pigments.
In an era when we are increasingly reliant on technology and corporate consumer goods, creating colorants from mushrooms feels like a radical act. Learning to extract these rich colors—which requires making countless decisions with our eyes, hands, and esthetic intuitions—gives us an intimate connection to each hue and its mushroom source. The time-honored, hands-on practice of working with the fruits of the natural world presents an opportunity to reorient ourselves toward renewable sources and sustainable practices.
Imagine imbuing your world with radiant colors from mushrooms, being in harmony with your region’s ecology and helping transform the dye, textile and fashion industry. The Mushroom Color Atlas celebrates the infinite array of colors found in the fungi kingdom and is sure to inspire everyone from artists to designers and scientists to makers to create their own personal palette of fungi-sourced hues.
Order your copy today at Chronicle Books, Powell’s Books, Bookshop.org, Botanical Colors, Waucoma Bookstore, or Amazon.com.
I am a designer, artist, educator and Oregonian who grew up with a deep love for and curiosity about the natural world. I have been drawn to mushrooms ever since I was a kid playing out in the forests at the base of Mt. St. Helens. Those forests were my playground until the 1980 volcanic eruption, when my playground indelibly changed. However, I continued to be surrounded by forests, near and far and everywhere in between.
I experiment with the unpredictability of plants and fungi by growing and harvesting, observing and foraging, and tethering myself to nature’s seasons. With the Mushroom Color Atlas I decided to be more exacting with my experimentation, like a scientist in a lab, following the same processes each time in order to create a baseline for mushroom color.
My background in interactive design, along with my years of teaching, informed my approach to publishing the Mushroom Color Atlas as an online, educational experience for people around the world. I was inspired to continue my own work and contribute to what I value most: curiosity, education, creativity, collaboration, community, and the environment.
The resulting color story I present in the Mushroom Color Atlas is from a point in time, but it is meant to grow and evolve like the natural world itself. It represents my connection to the mycological world and those networks and relationships. You can use this color story to inform your own work, deepen your relationship with your environment and perform your own experiments based on my findings. You might not duplicate my results but instead you will learn from them to inform your own work.
When I am not out foraging you can find me tending to the soil, working in my art studio, or leading workshops.
Studio & Flower Farm
Upcoming Workshops
Personal
The Mushroom Color Atlas is the result of an incredibly talented team. I am very fortunate that my husband showed a profound interest in my idea and worked tirelessly on the visual and experience design of the Atlas. My long time friend and former colleague offered up his talents in programming and a new forged friendship sparked by Instagram led to the beautiful illustrations.
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Conceived by Julie Beeler
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Designed by Brad Johnson
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Programmed by Danny Rosenberg
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Illustrated by Yuli Gates
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There is a huge family of people to thank and for which I am very lucky they have shared their knowledge with me. To all the generous mycologists, mycophiles and mushroom dyers who have helped me on my mushroom dye journey: Rachel Zoller, Chelsea Heffner & Wildcraft Studio School, Ellen, Vicky and Carolyn the ‘dyers’ at Oregon Mycological Society, Alissa Allen, Michael Beug, Susan Hopkins, Ann Harmer, Arleen & Alan Bessette, the Norwegian Mycological Society and to Miriam Rice for her pioneering work.
To the natural dye community that has taught me so much: Judilee Fitzhugh, Michel Garcia, Catharine Ellis, John Marshall, Yoshiko Wada, Jenny Dean, Britt Boles, Liz Spencer and my natural dye study group buddies. To all of my students, past, current and future, who continually inspire me. To the land where I live and the place where I call home which stands on the lands of the Yakama Nation, whose ancestors resided here since time immemorial. Many Indigenous peoples thrive in this place – alive and strong.