Surface Diversity and Re-interpretation of the Image in Contemporary Cyanotype Practices
Chapter from the book:
Akyol Dayi,
B.
&
Özyonar Çırak,
B.
(eds.)
2026.
Visibility and Meaning in Contemporary Art.
Synopsis
This book chapter examines the transformation of the cyanotype (blueprint) technique, discovered by Sir John Herschel in 1842, from a mere photographic method into an interdisciplinary tool of expression within contemporary art practices. Representing a "slow photography" approach against the rapid and consumption-oriented image production of the digital age, this technique offers artists the opportunity to establish a tactile and experimental relationship with the physical properties of the material. Within the scope of the research, the technique is interpreted through traditional surfaces such as paper, textiles, glass, and ceramics, as well as alternative materials including wood, plastic, and eggshells. These experimental applications demonstrate that the surface is not merely a carrier, but an active narrative component that incorporates the object's own history of use and material memory into the image. The traces of wear on materials, the fragility of organic forms, and the accidental deformations provided by the chemical process build a new aesthetic language that questions the perception of perfection in contemporary art. Consequently, this study opens to discussion how the practice of cyanotype, by hybridizing with different disciplines, carries the visibility of the image into a tactile dimension and restructures meaning through the memory of the material.
