Schizonema implicatum 1851 - 1855

Editor: Here we have Anna Atkins' "Schizonema implicatum," created sometime between 1851 and 1855. It's a cyanotype, so the paper is this intense Prussian blue, and the plant itself is rendered in delicate white lines. It reminds me of an x-ray. What strikes you about this piece? Curator: It's interesting that you say X-ray, because what fascinates me is the role photography played in making the invisible visible, particularly in science. Atkins wasn't just an artist; she was a botanist, and she used this new photographic process to document algae specimens. This makes the image a document of science and of early photographic techniques. Editor: So, was she considered more of a scientist or an artist at the time? Did people even make that distinction so rigidly back then? Curator: That’s a good question! The lines were definitely blurrier. Scientific illustration was already a respected field, but photography offered a new level of objective detail, seemingly free of the artist's interpretation. Yet, Atkins chose cyanotype, which has this very distinctive and almost ethereal aesthetic. This complicates its perceived objectivity. Think about how museums were emerging then, shaping what was deemed worthy of preservation and display. The politics of seeing were deeply intertwined with these institutions. Editor: So, even a seemingly straightforward image of algae can be seen as participating in broader cultural and political conversations about science, art, and knowledge itself? Curator: Precisely. It’s about power, knowledge, and how institutions like museums mediate our understanding of the world. I believe this work is deeply important in the way photography blurred the lines between document and data. Editor: I hadn’t thought about it that way. Seeing it as part of the growth of museums and their influence is really helpful. Thanks for illuminating that.