CYANOTYPE photography involves coating paper with a special solution and drying it in the dark. An object is then placed on the paper and exposed to the sun or other UV light to develop the image.
When ready, the paper is rinsed with water to stop the development process. It will turn blue where the light hit the paper but remain white in areas that were blocked out. Translucent objects result in light blues.
The objects laid on the paper might be photo negatives, plants, feathers, lace, stencils or anything else that blocks or changes the way light hits the paper.
Cyanotypes can be “bleached” using washing soda which removes some or all of the blue. They can then “toned’ by soaking the bleached piece in high tannic solutions like tea or coffee.
WET CYANOTYPES also start with coated paper but before it is exposed it is sprayed with water or diluted vinegar. It may also be covered with soap bubbles and/or sprinkled with salt or other colourants.
Exposure time can be hours and the moisture creates a range of surprising effects as it develops in UV light (check out Jo Stephen’s website for more on wet cyanotype experiments).
MY WET CYANOTYPES usually blend the wet and dry techniques (but with no added colourants). The paper is coated, exposed and rinsed 2-3 times, drying it fully between exposures.
New objects are used for each exposure. Doing multiple exposures creates a sense of depth as lower layers are visible through areas that were subsequently blocked from the light.
I often bleach a layer or even two in a bath of washing soda to create a greater range of yellows, oranges, greens & blues in the final piece.
Each final piece is unique and is protected with either cold or hot wax (encaustic).
