Sunday Inspiration | Anna Atkins and Cyanotype

Well, it’s been over a year since I last wrote one of these but in the time of the Great Lockdown, I thought it’d be the ideal time to delve back into this blogging larke and share some more inspirations!

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For the first instalment in 2020, I’d like to focus on an important but often overlooked woman in science and art. Her work was an inspiration to some research I carried out when I was at university but more recently it’s been something I wanted to emulate in my own work. So without further ado I’d like to introduce you to botanist, photographer and Brit, Anna Atkins.

Born in Cranbrook, Kent in 1799, Atkins was a trained botanist, she even collected many of the seaweed specimens herself. But, despite her place in history, comparatively little is known about her artistic and scientific ideas.

In her first artistic undertaking, Anna assisted her father, John George Children, a chemist and mineralogist (and later the keeper of zoology at the British Museum) by hand-drawing more than 200 scientifically accurate illustrations for his translation of Jean-Baptiste Lamarck’s Genera of Shells, published in 1823. Anna’s marriage in 1825 to John Pelly Atkins, a wealthy West India merchant, gave her the time and freedom to pursue her passion for botany. She joined the Royal Botanical Society and collected seaweeds on her trips to English beaches; she also obtained specimens from botanical contacts around the world. By 1835, Children was enthusiastically promoting his daughter’s botanical collection and scientific interests (like any good parent) to his colleagues, including William Hooker, director of the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew; William Henry Fox Talbot, the inventor of negative-positive photography; and Sir John Herschel, who happened to be her father’s neighbour.

Her book, Photographs of British Algae, produced between 1843 and 1853, was the first publication illustrated exclusively with light-sensitive materials. Atkins printed and published Part I of British Algae in 1843 and in doing so established photography as an accurate medium for scientific illustration. This was the first application of photography to science—making Atkins the first known female photographer. Interestingly, while Atkins owned a camera, she used only the cameraless photogenic drawing technique to produce all of her botanical images.
What I also love about this book is that instead of traditional letterpress printing for the body copy, it relied on handwritten text.

The light-sensitive method Atkins worked with was an early kind of photography known cyanotype, a process very similar to photograms, think Man Ray.

The technique involves two iron-based chemicals; ferric ammonium citrate and potassium ferricyanide, which are applied onto regular paper (or untreated fabric) and left in the dark to dry. Then, a photo negative or flat object is placed over the paper and exposed to sunlight for several minutes. It’s super tricky trying to get the timings correct with British Weather but 5 minutes in direct sunlight is usually enough for a good exposure.

Next, the sensitised paper is then washed in clean water. The combination of the iron compounds and water create a chemical reaction that produces a Prussian Blue pigment, revealing a deep blue permanent print with the shadow or negative remaining the same colour as the paper.

I’ve always adored the cyanotype process, it’s something I’ve wanted to revisit over the last couple of years but never made the time for it. That said, I finally managed it a few days ago, perfect time to make use of the lockdown! Here are a few photos of one small test I did in my sketchbook:

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In this initial test, I coated a page in my sketchbook using a sponge so I could get a rough-edged texture. The design is from an old transparency I made a screen print a few years ago. I placed a small sheet of glass from an old photo frame on top to hold it in place but not obstruct the transparency during the exposure.

The resulting image is gorgeous. Interestingly, sharp in some paces but softer in others which is super nice. I usually like my prints to be pin sharp but this is a style anomaly that works really well with cyanotype (and with several attempted exposures after this, it helps to not aim for perfection!)

What I’m aiming to do is incorporate the cyanotype technique with screen printing to keep up with ht idea of a less digitally reliant process to help me focus on play and experimenting with collage and forcing me to be a bit less of a perfectionist. Doing larger tests (about A3 in size) has been tricky and frustrating at times but rewarding; I’m realising that it takes a lot of practice and understanding of the weather in order to get the best exposure as quite a few of mine have varied between brilliant and a bit shit.

It’s been fun so far though, so while I’ve had some small gaps between tasks in the day job, it’s given me time to fall back in love with a technique I’ve not used since I was at university. I should be uploading some images of the larger test prints soon, and eventually some with screen printed elements on them.

Sunday Inspiration | Lucienne Day

I've always has a real soft spot for art that was produced in the 1950s, particularly the textile and surface pattern designs of the era. More specifically the Astro 50s look which was the inspiration behind my 2016 range of Christmas cards. With that in mind, this weeks instalment of the Sunday Inspirations blog will be focusing on a woman who is probably one of 20th century Britain's most influential designers and whose work, for me at least, really embodies the cheerful energy and optimism of Britain in the years after the Second World War. That woman is Désirée Lucienne Lisbeth Dulcie Day OBE RDI FCSD or better known as Lucienne Day.

Born in Coulsdon, Surrey, England, and raised in nearby Croydon, Day was half-Belgian; the daughter of an English mother (Dulcie Conradi) and a Belgian father (Felix Conradi). At the age of 17, Lucienne enrolled at Croydon School of Art, where she developed her interest in printed textiles. She went on to specialise in this field at the Royal College of Art, where she studied from 1937-40. During her second year she was sent on a two-month placement to the firm Sanderson, where she worked in the company's large wallpaper studio.

During the early period of her career, Day's textiles were characterised by energetic rhythms and a spidery, almost doodle-like graphic style. Although apparently spontaneous, her designs display a considerable amount technical skill, particularly with their colourways and repeats. As well as pure abstracts, she often created stylised organic patterns incorporating motifs such as skeletal leaves, spindly stems, feathery seed heads and butterflies. Her early textile designs were inspired by her love of modern art, particularly the abstract paintings of Swiss-German artist Paul Klee, which when compared to Day's works, it's quite clear to see the inspiration.

Calyx | Produced in a variety of different colourways, Calyx was considered the breakthrough design for Day's career

Calyx | Produced in a variety of different colourways, Calyx was considered the breakthrough design for Day's career

Calyx | Probably my favourite colourway that Calyz was produced in. The contrast between the yellow and the grey is stunning

Calyx | Probably my favourite colourway that Calyz was produced in. The contrast between the yellow and the grey is stunning

Calyx | Even though there are many colourways, each one is expertly composed, with all colours working impeccably well together

Calyx | Even though there are many colourways, each one is expertly composed, with all colours working impeccably well together

One of her most well known textile designs, Calyx (pictured above), was originally shown at the Festival of Britain in 1951, and is considered her breakthrough design. Day collaborated with Heal’s (the British furniture and furnishing store chain) to create Calyx; a stylised floral design mixing muted and earthy colours, that represented a radical new aesthetic in pattern design. Lucienne said later in an interview that Heals’ then fabrics director, Tom Worthington, was unsure of the pattern, and “would produce it for me but only pay me half the fee of 20 guineas because he was certain he wouldn’t sell a yard”. She went on to produce around 70 patterns for the brand over 20 years, and Calyx still remains in production today.

 Later in the decade, responding to new artistic trends such as abstract expressionism and the architectural fashion for floor-to-ceiling picture windows, Lucienne’s designs for Heal’s became more overtly painterly and much larger in scale. 

Although abstraction was the dominant idiom in her work, Day also perpetuated the English tradition of patterns based on plant forms, often incorporating stylised motifs derived from nature, such as leaves, flowers, twigs and seedpods. After dabbling in painterly, textural abstraction during the early 1960s, she experimented with more hard-edged, multi-layered geometric designs composed of primarily of squares, circles, diamonds and stripes during the mid to late 1960s. Stylised florals and arboreal designs remained recurrent motifs until the mid 1970s.

Perpetua | For British Celanese, 1953

Perpetua | For British Celanese, 1953

Herb Anthony | For Heal's, 1956

Herb Anthony | For Heal's, 1956

With a career spanning over six decades, Day had worked with countless big-name brands including the likes of Liberty, John Lewis, Cole & Son and Rosenthal, designing fabrics, wallpapers, carpets, homeware and ceramics. To each, she brought her unique flair for colour, line, form and composition, creating a recognisable style that feels fresh decades later. In an interview with It's Nice That, her daughter Paula stated that her work is ‘timeless’ in much the same way as that of William Morris' has become a veritable classic.

"I wanted the work I was doing to be seen by people and to be used by people. They had been starved of interesting things for their homes in the war years, either textiles or furniture."

It just so happens to be Lucienne Day's centenary this year, of which John Lewis are celebrating with a new collection of her prints. For me though, I wanted to look at the work of a prolific surface patter designer because it's an area that I want to consider as a new application for my own work.
While I enjoy screen printing for paper prints, I'd quite like to get into turning lettering work into more pattern-based prints for textiles and t-shirts. I have this vision in my mind of what it would be like to have my lettering used as a repeat pattern on the fabric of a smart shirt (this thought came about after seeing a gorgeous dress my friend Naomi has). The question now is, how do I go about this?

Well, it's been done before, I know that much. One of my career inspirations is Martina Flor; she's got a wide range of applications for her work including metal pins and bags, but she's recently been experimenting with repeat patterns...
 

Dreamer | Courtesy of Martina Flor's Instagram

Dreamer | Courtesy of Martina Flor's Instagram

Caps | Courtesy of Martina Flor's Instagram

Caps | Courtesy of Martina Flor's Instagram

While both pattern experiments are gorgeous, I feel like I'd much rather have the "Caps" design as a print on a piece of fabric or item of clothing, whereas the "Dreamer" would be too busy (I've got this design on a small pin badge and it's gorgeous on its own), but much better suited to something like wallpaper or a screen print. I feel that the recent work I've been doing with Spencerian scripts could fit quite well with a pattern style similar to that of the "Caps" piece, with intertwining letterforms and flourishes creating sub patterns similar to the details of Lucienne Day's works.

There's plenty of scope here for experimentation on my part, which means the next couple of weeks are going to be filled with sketching and test printing. Like I need an excuse to spend time at PrintHaus anyway!

Identity Crisis

With the whole "new year, new me" cliche flying around, I'd been debating whether it was time that I refreshed my freelance identity as I felt it wasn't really reflecting who I am as an artist. After a spell of indecision, I started sketching out a few thoughts running through my head and wrote down a few things that I felt summed up where I was in terms of my current skill level.

Don't get me wrong, I loved how my original logotype looked but it started to look a little dated to me. I created the original way back in 2015, not long before I moved to Cardiff, and a part of me didn't want to rework it because I felt like it had become a part of who I am.
Like I say, the main reason for updating it was to ensure that I was representing my current skill level. If you look at the the two of them side by side you can clearly see a HUGE difference in both style and skill. I've got a bit of a thing for Spencerian-style scripts, and that's been reflected a lot in my most recent works (of which there haven't been a lot of, sorry...) because I love the contrast of sharp points and silky curves, so this was obviously something that I felt needed to be included...

Left: Original logotype from 2015 | Right: Reworked lettering for 2017

Left: Original logotype from 2015 | Right: Reworked lettering for 2017

Not that I'm blowing my own trumpet here, but there's a dramatic improvement in the way I shape my letterforms, but also more confidence in their form. I think Spencerian is probably my strongest lettering style because it's one I love so dearly. I've also tried to incorporate a more rhythmic visceral appeal, something I've always admired in modern calligraphy, with the slightly varied heights and undulating descenders.
One thing I especially like about the new-look lettering is that there's less dependence on superfluous flourishes. I want the focus to be on the letterforms and the composition, not the things that surround them. Cutting down the flourishes to just the one of the end of "Stee" works to balance out the overall shape of the logo, and the simple underscore adds a little depth because there aren't any descenders in "Chromatic".

This confidence and rhythm is something I'm really aiming to embody in my work this year.

For the first time in too long, I'm going to be back at Printhaus this weekend, so I'm going to have a play with some printed editions of the new logo and create a colourful version for use somewhere, maybe Twitter.

Sunday Inspiration | Mike Perry

I enjoyed what I studied during my undergraduate degree, but I felt like I'd left with no idea where I was or who I was as an artist. It drove me mad for months. When someone asks why I chose to study lettering for my MA, I tell them about the initial struggle I had when I was surrounded by students that knew exactly what they wanted to do, those that wanted to take their practice to new places or those that wanted to shift it into a completely different area.

Filled with doubt about my future, I headed home at the end of an induction session at the Parkside campus of Birmingham City University. Sitting in front of my then limited collection of books, I spotted something I fell in love with when I was studying at college: Hand Job: a Catalogue of Type by Mike Perry. A collection of various artists and designers from the Western Hemisphere (mostly from the U.S) that either dabbled with, or specialised in hand drawn lettering. As I started flicking through the pages (of what I now refer to as my Bible) and grinning to myself, I realised that typography was always something that I should have pursued right from the very beginning. The next day, I took the book on to campus and thrust it in front of my tutor Clive and said "that's what I want to be". The rest is, as they say, history.
The book itself only features snippets of Perry's work on the beautifully illustrated covers, as well as in the accompanying preface and contents pages. So for this week's installment of Sunday Inspiration, I'd like to introduce you to the work of artist, illustrator, serial doodler and my hero Mike Perry.

Mike Perry | Portrait by Matt Rubin for The Great Discontent, 2015

Mike Perry | Portrait by Matt Rubin for The Great Discontent, 2015

Born in Kansas in July 1981, Michael Christopher Perry is an artist, designer and print maker based in Brooklyn, New York. He's worked with a number of institutions, the likes of editorial and commercial clients such as Apple, The New York Times, Dwell, Microsoft, Urban Outfitters, Nike and most recently the opening credits to the American sitcom Broad City.

“I want to show people that the world is a beautiful, powerful place where you can be yourself and make whatever you want.”
 

Perry's work revolves around the philosophical concept of existentialism; the connection between an individual and the universe, and how we are all interconnected. Much of his work, if not all of it, focuses on his own personal metaphysics and the relationship between his imagination and reality. For me, this is most notably portrayed in his more sculptural work, some of which feature ladders that seem to disappear into the ground, or pass through the floor, into an adjacent wall. Interestingly they also only ever seem to go “up” (which I like to think is a notion of positivity), depicting this transition from one realm into the next.

I've always admired his work, but it's difficult to describe; there's a simplicity and seeming naivety to his letter-based work that I love. A kind of cosmic "otherworldly" feel to it which, while being light-years away from the stuff I produce, is every bit as skilful.
You can really feel the passion he has for his work when you look at it. The incredible use of highly saturated colours through everything he does is what really appealed to me way back when I discovered his work. I remember looking over his work and at first thinking "that's so simple" and "how has he managed that?!" and then looking into it and seeing that there's far more to it than my jealousy for his commercial success.

When it comes to typography as a whole, we recognise that it mirrors qualities from history and the physical world (for example the Humanist type classification is influenced by the calligraphic scripts of the Italian Humanist writers) and that understanding is consistently similar from one person to the next. So with that in mind, we could say that the qualities we see in Perry's lettering illustrations reflect the inner workings of his imagination and possibly represents dimensions outside of the one we perceive.

A feast for the eyes | Perry's current homepage

A feast for the eyes | Perry's current homepage

Perry's type triggers the imagination, evokes a sense of playfulness and links to all of the senses. Personally, some of the attributes I recognise are from the real world, like how loud the words might sounds or what it would feel like to hold it in your hands.  I'm not sure if this is subliminal or not because I'm trying to disseminate the work, but if you look at the screenshot of his current homepage (above) it's like a multisensory, imagination grenade with all the warmth and joy that welcomes you to his site!

Below are a selection of small lettering projects from over the last couple of years. I think snippets such as these are great representations of the naivety and playfulness I've mentioned. I also believe that they reinforce the idea of a multisensory approach, the "touch and feel" that is most apparent throughout Perry's 2D work. The initial vibrancy and freedom that drew me to his work all those years ago still fills me with nostalgia and joy.

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I've wanted to talk properly about Perry for a long time as he's probably the biggest influence on my career path. I did a research project on him and the notion of existentialism back when I did my MA, but I think I completely missed the point when I was writing it. In a way, I'm hoping that this post has picked up from that essay and built on it with hindsight, more informed information and a more rounded opinion.

Finally, I'd like to apologise that this is over a week late, but it's taken a while to write and edit this piece. Trying to set myself a benchmark each week is proving slightly difficult!