Drawings, Composition

The exposures weren't great, but I think these are all worth another shot...

Starting to think about the composition for the Esther Scroll:

Inspired by this Iraqi megillah (Braginsky collection):

Playing with patterns:

Inspired by:

An old tree drawing:

Leonardo's water studies:

Experimenting With UV Light

I used two 48" white Black Lights (BL) by GE in a double-light/under-mount utility fixture.

1) First we (Tom the wood-shop monitor and I) tested the light with a photography light meter.  The light consistently covered an area of 12"x36", which made me rethink my original design (more on that later).

2) When I got home I tested the light again with treated papers underneath. I put a negative in the center to test exposure:

3) The results-- notice the lighter edges:

4) Checking value with another cyanotype:

More Illuminations

Blue, black, and purple backgrounds:

I am researching these because of the dark blue nature of cyanotypes.

Schocken Bible:

Frankfurt Mishne Torah:

The Black Hours:

The Morgon Library Online has the full manuscript 

http://www.themorgan.org/collections/works/BlackHours/thumbs.asp

Vienna Genesis:

Charles V Vaudetar Bible:

The Blue Qu'ran:

It is beautiful...

http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/2004.88

A scientific codex:

To inspire my work on the aloe plant...

The Vienna Dioskurides

Persian Illuminations:

http://persian-book.wikidot.com/

http://www.online-literature.com/forums/blog.php?b=6446

A contemporary Esther Scroll by Avner Moriah:

http://www2.library.yale.edu/judaica/newacquisitions2006.html

http://avnermoriah.com/

And of course, the Bayeux Tapestry:

At 70 m long (approx. 200 ft), with incredibly detailed animated illustrations-- it is a must-see if you are ever in the Normandy region of France.

http://www.tapisserie-bayeux.fr/index.php?L=1

Persian Jewish Manuscripts

Looking for inspiration...

The story in the Book of Esther took place in ancient Persia-- hence my interest in Persian manuscripts.

http://www.biblediscovered.com/holy-land-antiquities-discovered/the-story-of-persia-and-the-jews-exhibition-video/

At Yale!  I sent a request to view in person.  I hope it works out:

http://www2.library.yale.edu/judaica/newacquisitions2006.html

Written in Judeo-Persian (the "Jewish" version of Farsi):

http://www.artatthecenter.com/html/items.cfm?id=8

The Bouton Haggadah done in a Persian style.  From the Braginsky collection:

http://www.braginskycollection.com/

The Results

For the original photoshopped images, see previous post.

Experimenting with contrast:

Still needs tweaking.  If the middle strip had more whites, it would be close to prefect...

Playing with layering, inversions, and text:

Filters:

some were too light!

Cyanotypes from older cyanotypes:

eh...

More play:

Converting drawings:

yes!  Will try some more.

Making the Negatives: Photoshop

The basic process is simple:
1. Import digital image into Photoshop.
2. "Desaturate"
3. Adjust using "exposure" or "levels."
4. "Invert"
5. Print onto transparency--I have used Inkpress and Pictorico with good results.  Use an inkjet printer.

Of course nothing about this process is simple.  Different levels of contrast will give different results.  I spent quite a bit of time researching "the perfect negative," but then decided to just play around in Photoshop.  After all, I am not trying to make the perfect photo...  Below are the Photoshop results; tomorrow the magic happens with the actual cyanotype printing.

Experimenting with contrast:

Layering, inversions:

Filters:

Making  negatives out of old cyanotypes:

Playing with previous compositions:

Converting Drawings:

I also played with distortions, but don't want to post without permission from the distorted people (or their parents)...

Chemical Experiments

I am starting with household chemicals:

Tea staining; a lot darker than I expected. The concentration was probably too high.

Lemon juice+water (L), borax (M), peroxide-water-baking soda (R).  It is hard to see the effects in the photograph.  The lemon juice added more value range, the borax gave a slightly more violet tint but also washed it out (I did not like the results), and the peroxide-baking soda brought out the mid tones and sharpened the image nicely.

I tried the vandyke/cyanotype combo again BUT put a diluted vandyke solution over the cyanotype.

Project One: An Esther Scroll

I am taking a small break from my other projects/ideas (garden, Song of Songs, aloe plant, wombs... see link http://www.leahcaroline.com/new-work-august-2011-may-2012.html ) and making something in honor of my daughter Esther's Bat Mitzvah.  She is named after Queen Esther from the Book of Esther, which is traditionally read from a scroll on the holiday of Purim.  I plan to make something that is at least "scroll-like" (relatively long and narrow) with the text of her Bat Mitzvah speech and maybe portions of the Megilla (Book of Esther, or Esther Scroll).  The Braginsky collection (see link below) is someone's personal collection of old illuminated manuscripts digitally recorded in incredible detail.  It is a real inspiration.

http://www.braginskycollection.com/