My work considers ideas such as the primal and spiritual relationship to the natural world. We feel an inherently known feeling of belonging and adventure. A calling of curiosity that leads us to explore our ever changing planet. Expressed in the process of Cyanotype prints, the images transform into a painterly ephemeral moment on paper. The process utilizes all the natural elements, Earth, Air, Water, and Fire, connecting the work on an alchemic level to nature. Each photographic negative is layered upon a light sensitive coated paper that is then exposed to the Sun, igniting the irons and salts in the solution to turn blue. The areas of the print that are covered from the sun do not expose and therefore stay white. The prints are then washed thoroughly and dried. The process itself is a study of alchemy and art, each print rendering into its own uniqueness. 

Cyanotype is a non toxic photographic process using chemistry and sunlight that dates back to the 1840s created by botanist to document their new discoveries. I strive to continue that legacy with my own images and botanical prints.

-Vanessa Ortiz Reyes

Cyanotype Prints available in studio or able to ship, contact for inquiries.