Provincetown: The oldest continuous
art colony in America; a vibrant, diverse
and exciting art community that today
is home to over 50 galleries --
we're proud to be one of them.
Gallery Ehva represents exciting roster
of Provincetown and Outer Cape contemporary artists and offers
year-round workshops for beginners
and edvanced students of all ages.
We also work with local art collectors and show Early Provincetown Art and
Modern Art on consignment basis.
Our shows change every two weeks
with openings on every other Friday
evening 6 to 8pm.
Stephen Aiken
Tracey Anderson
James Bakker
Rachel Brown
Daniel Cleary
Barbara Cohen
Didier Corallo
Daniel Dejean
Donna Dodson
Mona Dukess
Rob DuToit
David Ellis
Nathalie Ferrier
Jenny Fragosa
Wendelin Glatzel
Irén Handschuh
Myrna Harrison
Alicia Henry
Jenny Humphreys
Leslie Gillette Jackson
Zehra Khan
René Lamadrid
Jonggeon Lee
Bill Liebeskind
Kevin McDermott
Andy Moerlein
Ewa Nogiec
Janice Redman
Jackie Reeves
Meg Shields
Richard E. Smith
Lisa Ventre
Michael Walden
Rob Westerberg
Tim Winn
Cyndi Wish
Ewa Nogiec, Director
art@galleryehva.com
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WHAT WE DO WHEN WE
DON'T
MAKE ART
Gallery Ehva
74 Shank Painter Road
Provincetown, MA 02657
508 487-0011
© 2009-2011 Gallery Ehva
All rights reserved.
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James Bakker
Cyanotypes
James Bakker making cyanotypes
Cyanotype is a photographic printing process that gives a cyan-blue print. The English scientist and astronomer Sir John Herschel discovered this procedure in 1842. Even though John Herschel is perhaps the inventor of the cyanotype process, Anna Atkins actually brought this to photography. She created a limited series of cyanotype books that documented ferns and other plant life, and by using this process, Anna Atkins is regarded as the first female photographer.
The process uses two chemicals:
Ammonium iron(III) citrate
Potassium ferricyanide
They result in a photo-sensitive solution when dissolved in water, which is used to coat a material (usually paper). A positive image can be produced by exposing it to a source of ultraviolet light (such as sunlight) with a negative. The UV light reduces the iron(III) to iron(II). This is followed by a complex reaction of the iron(II) complex with ferricyanide. The result is an insoluble, blue dye (ferric ferrocyanide) known as Prussian blue.
The developing of the picture takes place by flushing it with flowing water. The water-soluble iron(III) salts are washed away, while the non-water-soluble Prussian blue remains in the paper. This is what gives the picture its typical blue color. The process was popular in engineering circles well into the 20th century. The simple and low-cost process enabled them to produce large-scale copies of their work, referred to as blueprints.
In a typical procedure, equal volumes of an 8% (w/v) solution of potassium ferricyanide and a 20% solution of ferric ammonium citrate are mixed. This mildly photosensitive solution is then applied to a receptive surface (such as paper) and allowed to dry in a dark place. Cyanotypes can be printed on any surface capable of soaking up the iron solution. Although watercolor paper is a preferred medium, cotton, wool and even gelatin sizing on nonporous surfaces have been used. Care should be taken to avoid alkaline-buffered papers which will cause degradation of the image over time.
Upon exposure to ultraviolet light (such as that in sunlight), the iron in the exposed areas will reduce, turning the paper a steel-grey-blue color. The extent of color change is dependent on the amount of UV light, but acceptable results are usually obtained after 10-20 minute exposures on a bright, sunny day. The highlight values should appear overexposed as the water wash will reduce the final print values.
Prints can be made with large format negatives and lithography film, or everyday objects can be used to make photograms.
