Plant Pigment Emulsions

[Annie]

I have a series of LF negatives of Black Iris & Poppy Pods that I would like to contact print using the pigments and photosensitive resins of the respective plants. I believe that the liquid pigment from the Black Iris has some wonderful potential as when it mixed with solutions of varying pH it reveals a spectrum from pale yellow through the greens & blues to deep purple/black. The poppy resin also has some interesting qualities when first collected and applied immediately to a paper substrate it is clear but upon exposure to UV light it turns a rich dark umber. As the resin from the poppy is a photosensitive alkaloid it may be compatible in tandem with some of the other alt processes... any ideas?

I believe that the use of plant pigments and resins have been used in emulsions in the past but I can find very little information. As I have very little of the raw materials for experimentation (only 2 cups of the iris pigment and ½ cup of the clear latex (collected at night and kept in the dark). I would appreciate any references, published data or formulas that would assist me in making a few prints.

Cheers & Thanks,
Annie

 

[nze]

anthotype

Hi Annie

I don't know muwh about the use of the resin , But Htere is some infomration about the use of petals pigment
on google and some photography on the alternative photography web page

I did some anthotype with Poppies and red flowers, it is a funny thing to do with children
hope this help.

 

[Annie]

Christian,

Anthotype! .....knowing the name of the process will certainly make research much easier. The links you provided were very helpful. I am in the process of making small hand bound books of my platinum/palladium prints and thought it would be nice to make myself a Garden Journal which included few prints from the flowers in my garden.

Thank you for your help....

Cheers, Annie.

 

[nze]

Annie

I will be pleased to see some of your platinum/palladium, But on which paper did you finally print them?
will you do japanese binding or occidental one?

cheers...

Christian

 

[Annie]

Christian,

At this point I am using a very primitive methods of book forming. One where the pages are folded and sewn, closer to the old Japanese style.. I have been printing on a double widths of the COT320 so there is an integral interleaving sheet. The other is the Bergger from my 'paper chase' (this paper turned out beautifully for high key detailed images), remounted and formed into an 'accordion' book that is a series of images of the surface of the sea.

Well, I have an Anthotype in the contact frame at this very moment.... I discovered that fixed out fibre based paper accepted the pigment beautifully and with several coatings a deep rich hue was possible..... I imagine the 'printing' will take some time as the pigment is very resistant... My fingers are dyed purple and nothing I have tried so far will remove it.

Cheers and thank you again for your help and interest in my 'projects'...

Annie