The First 22 Pages of Blueprint to Cyanotypes
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Blueprint to cyanotypes Exploring a historical alternative photographic process Malin Fabbri and Gary Fabbri Published by Malin Fabbri, AlternativePhotography.com Blueprint to cyanotypes - Exploring a historical alternative photographic process © 2006 First published 2006. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher. Cover design and photography by Malin Fabbri. Printed on demand by Lulu. Published by Malin Fabbri, AlternativePhotography.com Vikingagatan 45, 113 42 Stockholm, Sweden Copyright © 2006, Malin Fabbri, AlternativePhotography.com. ISBN: 978-1-4116-9838-3 For further information go to: http://www.AlternativePhotography.com/BlueprintToCyanotypes.html Blueprint to cyanotypes - Exploring a historical alternative photographic process © 2006 Contents About the authors 4 Introduction.............................................................................................. 6 Cyanotype.history........................................................................................7 The.cyanotype............................................................................................ 9 Making.a.print.......................................................................................... 12 The formula 13 Preparing the canvas: cloth, paper and natural fibre fabrics........................... 14 Three different coating methods 17 Drying.....................................................................................................18 Skip the drying and wet process 18 Preparing.your.image................................................................................19 Photograms: Using Objects 21 Creating.a.negative....................................................................................23 Troubleshooting - digital negatives 32 Printing - contact frames............................................................................34 UV.sources................................................................................................35 Exposure.times.around.the.world................................................................36 Exposing.the.print.....................................................................................39 Processing.and.drying................................................................................ 41 Troubleshooting - printing 42 Creative uses for cyanotypes........................................................................44 Colored.material.......................................................................................45 Toning.cyanotypes.....................................................................................47 Different toning methods 49 Papers......................................................................................................53 Toxicity....................................................................................................54 Safety and storing......................................................................................54 Washing fabrics and cloth.......................................................................... 57 References................................................................................................59 Weights, measures and conversions 59 Where to get chemicals 60 Further reading 67 Internet resources 68 Blueprint to cyanotypes - Exploring a historical alternative photographic process © 2006 About the authors alin Fabbri grew up in Sweden. In her early twenties she moved Mto London to study Design, English and Photography. In London she worked as a designer for video production companies, design studios and big media names like Time magazine and CNBC Europe. She earned an MA in Design studies at Central St. Martin’s School of Design, London. Her thesis concentrated on ‘alternative photography’ and the research involved a lot of work with cyanotypes. When she started her research, she found several books explaining the chemical started Cyanotypes.com. A process but it was hard to get hold of written number of the artists that had helped her material on the perception and the ART of from the beginning were interested in cyanotypes. Sitting in the London Printing publishing their photographs on the site and Library and leafing through a book on Anna it has grown to include all alternative photo- Atkins’ cyanotypes fascinated her. But graphic processes in use by artists today. she wanted to see more of this blue-toned artwork. Soon she began making contacts AlternativePhotography.com now repre- with artists working with historical photo- sents over 200 artists and continues to grow. graphic processes today. Everyone she The website still maintains its origins as a contacted was very enthusiastic, and it was source of information and research for alter- their enthusiasm that kept her going for the native photographic processes. two years she worked on her thesis. Malin actively manages the expansion of Finishing her degree and publishing the site as editor. She makes her own cyano- her thesis felt more like a beginning than types and runs workshops. She lives and an end to Malin. She decided to combine works in Stockholm with her husband, Gary, her academic and practical experience and and their son, Maximillian. Blueprint to cyanotypes - Exploring a historical alternative photographic process © 2006 ary Fabbri grew up in Rhode Island, second film,Sisyphus , premeired in London USA. An early interest in writing and was shown in festivals all over the world, Gand drawing led him to pursue including Ireland and South Korea. As a both fine art painting and writing. His New director Gary has made numerous television England landscapes have been exhibited adverts and several programmes including a throughout the east coast, where he has also documentary, Making It, for FoxKids. had a number of one man shows. Gary is constantly experimenting with His master’s thesis, a screenplay, To Find different visual media, and when Malin intro- His Breath, led him to find work in the televi- duced him to the cyanotype process he felt it sion industry. He moved to London in 1993 was an excellent complement and extension working as an editor and writer/director. to his artwork. The ease and flexibility of the cyanotype process allows him to fit print- While working in the television industry making into a busy schedule. in London, Gary met Malin. As Gary continued his career as a creative director he Gary and Malin moved to Stockholm in and Malin also pursued personal projects. 2004 where they started a family. Gary runs They made several short films together.Do his own company in Stockholm called Shed9, it Now! was shown at the Raindance film and continues to write, direct, paint and festival and was rated best film on the British make cyanotypes. Telecom website GetOutThere.com. A Blueprint to cyanotypes - Exploring a historical alternative photographic process © 2006 Introduction hy a book on cyanotypes? The developing process is straightfor- The cyanotype is often the first ward. The chemicals are cheap, and most of Walternative process that people the other items used can be found around try. It’s relatively easy and safe enough to the house. Pre-coated paper is available, but nurture a child’s interest in photography. It one of the benefits of working with cyano- can be seen as a gateway to further explora- types is the great flexibility of material and tion of historic photographic methods. In paper available to you. Cyanotypes print on addition, it gives experienced photographers anything made of natural fibre. Cotton, linen, and artists a great excuse to take their eyes silk, handmade paper, watercolor paper and off of the computer screen and get their rags are just number of alternatives. Some hands dirty. Of all the alternative processes, artists even print on wood. the cyanotype is the one closest to my heart. So, if you want to explore a fun alternative I made my first cyanotype in 1999. I was photographic process or seriously want to intrigued by the blue images and wanted to experiment with producing unique fine art, test the cyanotype process to see what it had make a cyanotype. to offer. I bought chemicals and spent an evening coating paper and cloth. The results of the next day’s printing surprised me. Although the alchemy of the darkroom had always captivated me, developing a print in the sun was like a liberation. One Malin Fabbri of the things I found most refreshing about Stockholm, 2006 the process was the unpredictability of the results. Some of my best prints were the product of ‘happy accidents’. Blueprint to cyanotypes - Exploring a historical alternative photographic process © 2006 Cyanotype history oday’s photographers manipulate handmade. She then went to publish further and print images with ease. Given studies of plants. Eventually, pictorialists T the range of digital processes avail- latched onto the idea of cyanotypes and a able, it is easy to forget that only 180 years special paper was marketed for them. ago photography as we know it was not even invented. Although silver based developing At that time, the competition to capture methods became the perfect image was intense. Many the standard, the processes were experimented with and ease of use and discarded. Some techniques were too slow, the affordability others too expensive, and