Mordancage Radiolaria Images

This weekend was productive and Josh and I busted out quite a number of silver prints and then Mordancaged a substantial number of them. The show is coming together even though it's not going to happen until September. Here is a little sneak peak at some of the images. I don't feel bad showing them early because they will actually change color some more as they oxidize.

Nebraska: A Haiku

Here, a white pigeon
Made her nest beneath the bridge
At the overpass

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Radiolarian Church Interiors

If I've never said this before, I think religious iconography comes from an innate desire to go back to a primitive oneness - to be part of an undulating amoeba - to be a simple single cellular organism. Radiolaria, discovered by the Victorian biologist, Ernst Haeckle are beings, usually found at the bottom of the ocean which have not changed much or evolved since the Pre-Cambrian period of pre-history.

I think when we look at church imagery, it recalls a state of being one of these early creatures from which we evolved so long ago, and brings with it that feeling of oneness with all other primitive matter. This is what I think religious feeling is. I've started a series based on fractals and here is the first. They will be mordancaged.

The repeated and reproducing shape, like sex, evolves into complex mathematically perfect structures, while the Mordancage chemicals, like death eats away at the material. I am striving for a balance of creation and destruction in these images.

More-dancage!

WARNING:

Josh and I discovered that proper ventilation is ABSOLUTELY CRITICAL to this process. We both got what was probably Metal Fume Fever because we moved from the ventilated darkroom to the washroom and inhaled caustic fumes... don't do this. It's terrible and scary. However, working 2 times with the exhaust fan prior, we were fine. Use proper ventilation if you use this technique. I can not stress this enough.

But that said - here are some of the images I made.

Solo Mordancage Attempt

After having done a good deal of research I launched into the Mordancage process for my first solo effort. A little over a year ago, I first learned about the process from fellow artist, Marcy Werner. On this occasion she had done the research and the mixing of chemicals and I had simply reaped the benefit of her pioneering work, but yesterday I successfully replicated the process, albeit with results quite different from the first attempt.

I was able to pay Marcy's kindness forward by exploring the Mordancage process with a new friend; talented Photographer, Josh Fiedler, who was kind enough to play buddy system with me while I measured and mixed caustic chemicals in metrics. Here are some of the results:

Since this is just my first attempt, I will abstain from posting my methods, but I have documented the process with video, so that future Mordancage-curious photographers can try this experiment safely. There are certainly dangerous aspects to this process, and as the mothering type, I want to frame this information in a way that emphasizes planning and caution. Video to come!

Jan as Gif Animation

This was a test .gif animation I made in response to a class workshop I taught on the topic today. I didn't know how to do it before, but now, I have learned. So for Galentines Day - here's Jan.

A Verse for February

I lost my winter hat.
I watched helplessly over a dying bat.
Lost in the apartment lobby.
You shouldn't touch them if they are on the ground like that.
It usually means they're diseased.
And disoriented.
Maybe Dying.
Alone.

I opened my heart.
To Lincoln, Nebraska.
It objectified and demeaned me.
And just continues to build more Wal-marts.