In a Midnight Dream #10

Part of the In a Midnight Dream collection, this one-of-a-kind 5x7 cyanotype is handmade on Hahnemühle Platinum Rag Fine Art Paper.

In a Midnight Dream is my first collection. With these pieces, I aimed to portray a mix of whimsical and wistful, fun and mysterious, dark and light. I like to imagine the plants bending in some nocturnal, dreamlike dance. For many of these pieces, I sprinkled salt and/or turmeric onto the paper to give them a star-like quality.

No two original cyanotype pieces will ever be the same — and you never know how they’ll turn out (which can be cool…and frustrating. Sometimes, I’ll work all day without a single piece turning out, especially when I have a specific theme or concept in mind). I love to experiment with my cyanotypes with water, vinegar, soda ash, soap bubbles, salt and turmeric to get a variety of ethereal, dream-like results.

Note: Actual colors/tones/sharpness might vary slightly from images.

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The cyanotype origin story is scientific, imaginative and unusual — involving botany, blueprints and a female photography pioneer. So! Read on:

Basic cyanotypes are made by coating paper or fabric with a photographic solution and placing the plant/object on top, then exposing the project to sunlight. The natural light transforms the colors while capturing the silhouette of the object.

In the 18th and 19th centuries, engineers used the process as a simple, low-cost way to produce copies of drawings — better known as blueprints. During that time, English botanist Anna Atkins pioneered a more creative form of this blueprint process so she could better document ferns and other plantlife by placing the specimens directly onto coated paper using the same process. Because of this, she is often considered the first female photographer.