Alternative Processes Retreat
During the retreat, Lauren Comito hosted a workshop focused on cyanotype, lumen, and phytogram printing. Participants Yan Cynthia Chen, Jenn Dierdorf and Anne Schaefer collaborated using these techniques to produce a collective zine. Together, they explored different ecosystems in and around Lake George, NY.
Comito recently received a grant from The New School to create her first artist book—a reimagining of a 50-year-old field guide to the aquatic plants of Lake George. The project explores the interdependent relationship between humans and plant life, and our collective impact on the ecosystem.
To begin the retreat, the group studied the form and shadow of native plants in the area using cyanotype. Watercolor paper is coated with a light-sensitive emulsion and exposed to sunlight, then developed in water. The image persists with the help of oxygen.
For phytograms, participants set off on a hike to Lapland Pond to collect native plants found in a wetlands and a forested area, paying attention to what grows where and questioning why. After the hike, they made a plant-based developer with the plants they'd found. The plants soaked in the developer were placed on the surface of film and exposed to sunlight. The phenolic compounds found in plants interact with the photosensitive materials of the film to produce an image—the type of plant, temperature, and humidity level are all factors that impact the result.
One day was spent on Burgess Island, observing the plant life and ecosystems there. This was also the site of an introduction to lumen prints. Lumen prints are cameraless contact prints made by placing slightly dampened plants—either dampened with water or dipped in the plant-based developer—onto the surface of photographic paper. The chemical reaction between the silver salts and plant chemistry (phenolic compounds) creates the coloration.
The group was highly productive, producing a wealth of work over the course of the retreat. In the coming months, Comito will design and print a zine based on this collaboration.
Participants
Yan Cynthia Chen is a sculptor and educator based in Jackson Heights, Queens, NY. She primarily works with paper pulp and ceramics to explore relationships between bodies and their environments.
Lauren Comito is a New York-based visual artist working between the city and upstate New York. Her practice focuses on reclaiming everyday objects, transforming them into imagined artifacts for the future.
Jenn Dierdorf is a visual artist who lives in Hudson, NY. Her art practice is centered on queer feminism, which she understands as a continual effort to undermine patriarchal and capitalist paradigms.
Anne Schaefer is a visual artist based in Valarie, NY. Her work comprises painting, print, and large-scale installation, in which color and pattern are paramount to creating optically challenging and perceptually immersive experiences for the viewer.
