“Bracken anthotype” by Paul Ligas
Country: Ledbury, Herefordshire, England, UK
Parts used: Leaves
Amount: A handful
Extracted by: Mortar and pestle
Thinner: 4 teaspoons (tsp) isopropyl alcohol
Application: Brushing
Layers: 1
Substrate: 300 gsm, hot pressed Daler Rowney smooth watercolour paper
Created with: Laser printed OHP positive
Exposure: 6 hours late afternoon/evening light, Mid-June, summer 2023
Contrast: ✿✿✿ (High)
Observations: The emulsion was an almost fluorescent green that dried to a bright, lime green which softened a bit with time/exposure.
Additional information: I ripped the leaves, avoiding thick stems, and added the isopropyl alcohol to 3 tsp. I ground that up, and felt it needed another tsp of isopropyl. I stopped grinding it when there was an almost oily sheen on the surface of the emulsion in the mortar. The raw emulsion was filtered through cheesecloth, painted on the paper with a sponge brush and dried for several hours before exposure. Bracken may be the most common vascular plant in the world, found on all continents except Antarctica. It has great value to wildlife, and many ancient uses and mythology for people.
See gallery: AlternativePhotography.com/paul-ligas/
Instagram: @paulligasphotography
Facebook: facebook.com/PaulLigasPhotography/
Website: paulligasvisualart.uk
Bracken (Pteridium aquilinum) anthotype by Paul Ligas
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:
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:
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:
Make 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
Rated 9,8 - based on 224 votes
If you are already practising anthotype printing, we suggest making notes to document and learn:
50 pre-defined pages for you to document your anthotype process.
Anthotype notes – Document your anthotype process
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