Collective cyanotyping

Zoë Burt is exhibiting the fascinating results of her residence at the Brockwell Lido last summer, now on show at 198@45 gallery, in Brixton market.

This weekend she was doing workshops on the cyanotype process, where in Blue Peter style, you could make your own cyanotype easily – no chemicals required. It’s like a photogram, but cyan blue. On textured paper, it looks very similar to a gum bichromate image, painterly but uncannily ‘real’.

[singlepic id=60 w=320 h=240 float=left]Passers-by enjoyed choosing objects to place on the ready-prepared light sensitive paper, before sliding into an ultraviolet light box. Just like an oven, 10 minutes and out it comes, ready to be ‘developed’. A matching (it’s all in the detail) row of buckets outside were used to wash away the chemical residue. The morning cyanotypes were drying on racks. So simple, and so effective! I was there for an hour and the constant flow of people coming in and participating, cramming in the small space, showed how successful the event was. That means that probably dozens, if not hundreds more of your average citizens now know what a cyanotype is. For further info, the gallery’s handout explains that the process was invented in 1842 by an astronomer! Remember that next time you do a pub quiz…

#London #Workshop #Photography #WomenArtists #Collaboration #RelationalArt