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Arts & Communication Creativity and cyanotype: Camera-less photography

initial dark color of the paper. These imprints, made with to seal the surface may react unfavorably on contact with
water and personal objects, could seem less thoughtful, the photosensitive emulsion. Instead, these prints were
but the technique used to apply the emulsion, especially made on paper, which, in addition to being an acceptable
on the surface, should be noted. The student applied the technical solution, contributes to the development of the
emulsion in two different places, suggestive of notes to artist’s idea in restoring a fragmented historical object.
self, similar to post-its. In this project, one of us created The artwork presented here is just a sample of the
an autoethnographic piece, in which she describes herself conceptual and creative development assessed during the
through the objects she carries with her in her daily life. workshop. The pieces are based on personal findings and
This piece is the beginning of a series of images, which, as a interests and they resulted in complex images and objects
whole, became a large-format piece composed of the study that are directly related to their creators. As previously
of small objects. When gathered in the same place, these mentioned, unexpected results were achieved through
objects manage to stress the importance this particular she solutions found by the students themselves and it must be
gives to her routine. stated that these were not reviewed or discussed in class.

In this piece, the student presents us with an artist’s book
(on the left side, Figure 4) which includes a fragmented 4.1. Art exhibition: Dialogues in Blue
text, like a poem, with personal and daily reflections, that The artwork created during the workshop was exhibited at
suggest the passage of time. The latter is connected with the Universidad de las Artes in Aguascalientes from November
delicate materials we selected. The student used Chinese 16 – 23, 2022. In addition, the pieces were showcased
ink on acetate paper and watercolor. Negative spaces were in digital format on a virtual portfolio created using the
generated through cutouts and cyanotypes. The piece was Pixieset platform. These two exhibits were organized
designed so that viewers can manipulate it and, at the with the purpose of showcasing the physical nature of the
same time, help to disintegrate it as time passes. This piece, cyanotype process, which is discussed throughout this
made up of eleven petals that, when fully unfolded, form paper, and to give the students a chance to introduce and
a flower and has multiple interpretations, and the tactile publicize their work to the public, either on-site or online
element forms a central part of the piece, allowing for a full through social platforms.
appreciation of the images, the text and the negative spaces. The participants of the workshops were asked to take
Despite its small size, this is one of the more complex pieces part in the exhibition. Sixteen of them were interested
created during the workshops. As instructed during the in submitting their work and they were invited to select
workshop, the student developed a conceptual piece made one to five pieces. Ninety pieces were collected for the
of carefully chosen materials, on which their interactive exhibition. The administration department in Universidad
properties had been given some thoughts.
de las Artes was contacted so that this display could be part
In this final piece (on the right side, Figure 4), a of their newly created art project called Laboratorio de
wooden chair serves as the base, featuring acrylic paint Proyectos, in which local artists are allowed to use spaces
and cyanotype on paper. The blue-toned ornaments give within the university’s campus to display their work.
the impression of being intricately carved into the wood, After the pieces were collected and the necessary permits
evoking an impression of antique furniture. The cyanotype were given by Universidad de las Artes, the exhibition was
work presented in this piece was printed on cotton paper,
which was then incorporated into the object. Working with assembled. Several non-typical considerations were made
cyanotypes on treated wood is a very complex procedure for the exhibition setup since the students had been working
since the chemicals in varnishes and other solvents used with non-traditional approaches, a different type of display
that could enhance a more interactive experience with
the tactile nature of the pieces was conceived (Figure 5).
This could not have been achieved if the works had been
mounted linearly on the wall.

A few days before the inauguration, some of the students
volunteered to assist with the gallery setup. The exhibition
was made in assembled in 2 days, accounting for a total of
12 h of work. As a group, a photo installation using two
types of thread was conceived. A thick thread was hung
near the ceiling forming a cross, and thinner pieces of
thread were tied to hang loose to eye level and below, with
Figure 4. Interactive cyanotypes, 2022. the intention that the pieces would be displayed within the

Volume 1 Issue 2 (2023) 7 https://doi.org/10.36922/ac.1453