Calgarian teaches seniors about Cyanotype, a camera-less photography technique

One of the oldest forms of capturing an image without a camera is called cyanotype. It was developed in 1842 and today is used as an artform.

Cyanotype has become a passion for Christina Ryan, who’s spent a lifetime perfecting her craft with a camera.

The technique takes photograms using a few chemicals, the sun’s UV rays and water.

“This process is a mixing of two iron chemicals and was created in 1842 by Sir John Herschel,” Ryan said.

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“I think it allowed, at least recently, people to be involved in an alternative photography forum that was invented three years after photography was invented.”

Ryan takes her Cyanotype prints to craft markets all over southern Alberta, and spends a lot of time teaching the art form to people of all ages.

Recently, she hosted classes for residents at Bow View Manor in the community of Montgomery.

“They’d never heard of it before, so I think taking them through the process was really eye-opening, but then being able to see the work in front of them as it was being produced was just astounding,” she said.

“They’re invigorated by the oldest form of my craft, and I get to share that with them – how amazing is that!”

Ryan spent 20 years as a photojournalist and says for the last 10 years she has been teaching photography classes at SAIT.

She says Cyanotype creates white images on blue backgrounds by placing an object onto a piece of paper coated with two chemicals.

That paper is then exposed to the sun’s UV rays for about ten minutes to make a lasting image– sometimes referred to as sun prints or photograms.

“When it was first created, it was used more for capturing plants and architects and engineers for their plans,” she said. “But then the photocopier machine came out and that was nixed you know and now I think we’re seeing in the past 30 years as an art form.”

Ryan’s course is being offered in Bow View Manor’s Adult Day Program, which is made possible by the Creative Aging Calgary Society.

Alice Lam, board member, says it’s a registered charity that provides free arts programing and concerts to seniors throughout Calgary.

“Not every organization has money to hire artists and recreational therapists and things like that,” she said.

“So we started fundraising and we got some grant funding and we were able to basically employ artists to go to different senior residences once a month and teach them a new skill, it’s really cool.”

Lam says the program is making a difference in the lives of seniors who attend.

“For a lot of them, it’s picking up a paintbrush for the first time, picking up pottery for the first time,” she said. “It’s really meaningful to be able to offer that experience to seniors and showing the positive impacts of active and creative aging on a person’s life.”