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Blueberry (Vaccinium myrtillus) + Lupine (Lupinus Platycarpos) anthotype by Linda Maria Thompson

“Blomlandet from the anthotype book Återvändarna” by Linda Maria Thompson
Country: Sweden
Parts used: Petals, berries
Application: Dipping
Exposure time: 3-6 weeks
Month, season and year: July, Summer, 2017
Substrate: Watercolour paper
Contrast of final print: ** (Medium)

Blueberry (Vaccinium myrtillus) + Lupine (Lupinus Platycarpos) anthotype by Linda Maria ThompsonBlueberry (Vaccinium myrtillus) + Lupine (Lupinus Platycarpos) anthotypeAmount: 2 dl per batch
Extracted using: Hand mixer
Thinner: Vodka
Layers: 2+
Used to create image: Inkjet-printed OHP positive

Challenges or observations:
The pH of the lupines affects the blueberry color and clarity.

Instagram: @lindamthompson
Web: www.lindamthompson.com
Additional information:
The image is from my anthotype book Återvändarna / The Returners (2021), special edition (2022).

… the images are brought back to the land from which their subjects once left. Here, images from the archive are combined with plant-based emulsion and sunlight to create the anthotype, a plant-based photographic process invented in the early 1840s. Until recently, anthotypes have been largely ignored for their inherent impermanence; the inability to remain fixed. This trait, once seen as a drawback, is re-envisioned in Återvändarna / The Returners . The archival images are digitally captured and reworked before being exposed on hand-dyed paper for 2-6 weeks in the brief, but intense, summer sunlight of Northern Sweden. The emulsion itself is made from plants found nearby my home including wild blueberries (often described as a native plant tied to the Swedish self-image) and lupine flowers (often described as an “invasive species” brought to Sweden from North America circa 1870). The act of harvesting the plants offers space for contemplation and the processing of the emulsion is just that – a processing. Traces of plant material create images and associations of their own, leaving behind the mark of the landscape in the emulsion. The resulting anthotypes are an integration of time and place. The process returns the archival image to a state of transition while simultaneously connecting the work with the land and its history. The works return migrants to their transient fates while inviting us to contemplate the impermanent nature of the human condition.


 
 

This anthotype is part of World Anthotype Day

World Anthotype Day was started by AlternativePhotography.com in 2022. In August anthotype artists all over the world celebrate the anthotype process and send in their entries. We add them here to the database and create a reference book for each year. The purpose of the day is to build a large resource where artist can learn which pigmenets and plants that work and draw inspiration from other artists' work. The reference books can be found here:

Volume 1 is the first book in the series:
Anthotype Emulsions, Volume 1 – The collective research from photographers on World Anthotype Day 2022
Volume 1 contains 60 unique anthotype emulsions from 103 artists taking part from 31 countries.
 

Anthotype Emulsions, Volume 1 – The collective research from photographers on World Anthotype Day 2022


Volume 2 is the second book:
Anthotype Emulsions, Volume 2 – The collective research from photogaphers on World Anthotype Day 2023
Volume 2 contains 100 unique anthotype emulsions from 139 artists taking part from 31 countries.
 

Anthotype Emulsions, Volume 2 – The collective research from photographers on World Anthotype Day 2023


 
If you want to learn more about making anthotypes there is also the "how-to" book:
Anthotypes – Explore the darkroom in your garden and make photographs using plantsMake prints using plants - an environmentally safe process!
 
The most comprehensive resource on Anthotypes.
 

Anthotypes – Explore the darkroom in your garden and make photographs using plants

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If you are already practising anthotype printing, we suggest making notes to document and learn:
Anthotype notebook50 pre-defined pages for you to document your anthotype process.
 

Anthotype notes – Document your anthotype process

Free for Supporting Members - both new and exisiting!

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