So… I have my first proper gallery showing coming up in a couple of weeks (!!!). I have resisted showing my art in galleries for several several years now, mostly because I struggle to find the time and focus to finish enough pieces to create a cohesive show. My interests are too scatter-shot, and I value my free time to work on whatever project I feel like. (Consequently, I start new projects constantly and struggle to finish those things… but I digress.)
Then, I published my laundromat zine. I gave a copy to the owners of FVC Gallery in Walla Walla, WA because they are two of the nicest people and I thought they would appreciate it. And they offered me an opportunity to show some of my work in their space. I’m proud of my body of laundromat photography, and I’m not entirely immune to giving myself a chance to feel special. On the whole, I’ve enjoyed the challenge. My darkroom skills have grown over the last few months, and learning new skills like framing or designing packaging has been enjoyable.
Regarldess, preparing for a gallery show takes a lot of work. I know I am stating the obvious, but it’s not simply making the art. It’s making prints for sale, setting prices, packaging prints, selecting mat board, and a thousand other little details. Outside my day job, I’ve spent so many hours in the darkroom and preparing for the show. I can’t wait to show the results of my work to everyone.
A small part of me is also excited to be on the other side of the show opening so I have more time to work on all the projects and ideas rattling around my brain over the last few months.
Ideas I Want to Play With
1) Taking pictures.
The early darkness and cold weather also stymied my photography dreams, but I want to get out and take pictures. See new things. Test new angles. I want to spend more time experimenting with my new 4×5 large format camera. And I just want to feel the shutter button under my index finger again. I’m a fair weather photographer, and I miss the fair weather.
2) Experimenting with pinhole photography.
Pinhole cameras don’t produce good photos in a technical sense. The small pinprick of light it shows on the film produces an effect where everything is equally, ever-so-slightly, out of focus. The effect feels dreamlike. However, that small pinprick of light usually necessitates longer exposure times than you get with a regular camera. And that gives you time to play, and to capture motion in a way that makes the photo feel like time.
3) Experimenting with colored filters on black & white film.
I’ve had colored filters for a while, and I’ve taken them out a few times… but I want to practice and truly grasp the difference they make in a photo. This dream is low hanging fruit, but some of my ideas need to be low enough I can reach them without a step stool.
4) Trichrome photography.
Trichome photography is the same concept behind technicolor films. The idea is to take three black & white photos of the same scene: one using a red filter, one with a green filter, and one with a blue filter. Upon scanning all three negatives, you can create a faux color photo by combining the images together in Photoshop and assigning the three images to the correct color channel. This works because each colored filter blocks a certain portion of the visible light spectrum from reaching the film, creating an image showing a specific fraction of light. Layering the three images on top of one another and tinting them with the correct color makes an image we perceive as a colored image.
While this sounds easy, my previous attempts haven’t worked well. So this is a concept I want to revisit.
5) Cyanotypes on glass.
This one isn’t very easy. It sounds easy enough, but everything I’ve read shows that it basically requires making cyanotype jell-o and coating glass plates, which are two skills I’m weary of trying. But I still want to try.
6) Dual layer cyanotypes.
I have tried my hand at a few dual layer cyanotype pieces before, and I have enjoyed the depth and color it brought to regular cyanotype prints. And I just want to explore this idea more.
7) Cyanotype quilt.
I started a simple patch quilt with cyanotype-printed squares over a year ago. I stopped working on it at the time because I lost interest, but I really want to make more progress on it.
8) Suminagashi marbling.
Suminagashi marbling is magic. Adding little drops of the ink to the surface of water and watching the swirling patterns grow is a very zen experience, and I want some zen in my life. I also want to work on combining the marbling with cyanotype printing. I made a print like this accidentally a year or so ago, but I am so inspired by the work @lizpotterphotography is doing.
9) Liquid light experiments.
Liquid Light is the brand name that sticks out of a few different liquid photo emulsion products that can be painted or coated onto various objects, and then “printed” onto in the darkroom. And I can’t help but dream of printing photos directly onto something other than paper. In this same vain, I also want to give basic dry plate and tintypes a try, too.
10) Salt printing.
Salt printing is a form of alternative printing that creates these beautiful, chocolate-y, purple-y tones that I swoon over whenever I see them. I want to give that a try for myself.
Maybe I’ll even try combining it with cyanotype. Because everything is better with a little Prussian blue color.
11) Zines.
I love the idea of making zines, since I can combine several of my different hobbies together in an object that feels like the physical embodiment of my soul. That seems extreme, but my one taste of zine making so far created something that feels like the type of self expression I want to put into the world. And I want to try it again. I have a few concepts in my thoughts, and I want to make them real.
12) Making skirts.
I am not much of a sewer. I can hold my own with curtains or a simple bag, but I’m extremely novice in sewing clothing items. I have made a couple simple skirts in the past, but I want to work through my fabric stash to make a few skirts to add to my wardrobe. Because skirts are my favorite socially acceptable way to avoid wearing pants in public.
An Unrelated Note: Darkroom Playlists
As noted, I have spent a lot of time in the darkroom since the beginning of the year. I also happen to be the sort of person who listens to a few songs over and over on repeat until I sort of hate them. This is especially true whenever I’m doing an activity like darkroom printing. So I thought I’d share the albums I’ve listened to most while cranking out a ton of darkroom prints:
1. Cardinal by Pinegrove (2016)
Specifically, I am very very obsessed with their song “Old Friends”. Is it a particularly happy song? No. But the word play and vocabulary in the songwriting is superbly creative. I also have to give honorable mention to Marigold (2020) and Alaska (2021).
At the risk of turning this into a Pinegrove appreciation post, I’ll just say this gallery show is almost entirely brought to you with a soundtrack of Pinegrove’s music.
2. Dark Arc by Saintseneca (2014)
I saw this band play a show at my favorite local café, the Great Pacific Wine & Coffee Company, several years ago. Since then, a few of this band’s songs have lurked on my playlist, but they’ve really gone up to bat the last few months.
3. Somewhere in Between by Sunbathe (2020)
I had the good fortune of being introduced to this Portland, OR-based artist through a friend, and I just appreciate how calming this whole album is. It pairs well with a red light and darkroom magic.
4. Bronco by Orville Peck (2020)
I am a little disappointed in myself that I am so late to the party with Orville Peck. I heard the song “Lafayette” near the end of last year, and I instantly imprinted on that song in a way I can hardly describe. I listen to it over and over and over and over. And over. I am listening to it right now. So, of course, it was present in the darkroom. Along with several of Mr. Peck’s other songs.
5. Into the Rush by Aly & A.J. (2005)
I recently turned 30, and I have been holding hard to my tweenage nostalgia lately. This was one of the first albums I ever owned and I still have a soft spot for Disney pop of that era. I had a moment with this album in the darkroom the other day, and I thought you should know this album mostly holds up. I believe the kids these days would call some of these songs “a bop”.
Lora Makes Things 