Sarah Townley ARPS

Statement of Intent

I wanted to push against our world of the perfect digital photograph enhanced by digital manipulation.  I wanted to return to a softer and more random way of capturing images that could not be created with a camera.  My subjects were mainly plants and some fruit as they lend themselves to a natural beauty.

My panel is a selection of photograms made using the cyanotype method on paper, silk and cotton scraps. I manipulated the process to get away from the usual dark Prussian blue and white effect.  I am as surprised by what I captured as the early pioneers of cyanotypes must surely have been. This is an organic process where the results are unrepeatable, often surprising, sometimes disappointing and always unique.  

I used cyanotype chemicals to make paper or material light sensitive. After placing leaves or flowers on this it was put in the sun for 20 minutes to 2 days depending on what UV light was available. It was taken indoors, washed and dried with the final result revealing itself in 24 hours.

To change the colour palette I added lemon juice, salt, turmeric and even vinegar to the paper and chemicals. There was no careful deploying of these. I just did it as the whim took me and waited for serendipity to work.