Eco-printing is not generally defined as an alternative photographic process, but a closely related printing technique. it shares the same spirit of experimentation, natural materials, and handcrafted image-making. It also combines beautifully with processes such as anthotypes, which is why we want to share it. Yulia Kapustynska shares her eco-printing process.
Eco-printing creates images through direct contact between plants, metal, paper, heat, and time. Rather than using a camera or negative, the print develops through chemical reactions between natural materials, producing unique patterns and colours that cannot be fully controlled or repeated.
“In my work, I explore how to tame the chaos of nature. Eco-printing has become my ideal method — here, the image is not created through a lens, but born through direct contact between materials, heat, and time.”
For this method, ordinary watercolour paper works well, although regular office paper can also be used. Regular copy paper (especially standard 80 gsm) has rather poor wet strength and can become very fragile when boiled or simmered for a long time. In my own experiments, I tried eco-printing on regular A4 office paper (not the thinnest one), and the results were about 50/50 — some pieces held up okay, but others tore or became too soft and buckled badly. I recommend using ordinary watercolour paper instead. Fresh cornflower leaves – or other flowers and leaves – are arranged on the paper together with rusty metal, such as an old pipe or steel plates. Onion skins are then added around the composition.
The paper and materials are then wrapped tightly in an old cloth to apply even pressure.
The bundle is placed in a pot containing an onion skin decoction and boiled for 3 hours.
The amount of water and onion skins depends on the size of the metal object, but it is important that the metal remains fully submerged throughout the boiling process.
“I love the unpredictability of this process. Every time, a slightly different image emerges — like a small miracle that nature creates together with me.”
During heating, tannins from the plants react with the iron oxides in the rust, transferring colour and texture onto the paper. These natural chemical reactions create detailed botanical impressions alongside marks left by the rusting metal.
Once the bundle has cooled, it is carefully unwrapped and the plant material removed. The result is a stable print containing the traces of leaves, rust, and natural pigments. The finished print can also be photographed or scanned, with slight contrast adjustments if desired, to better show the details of the image.
Although the basic method can be repeated, every print is unique.
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