Chondrus crispus c. 1843 - 1853

This is an image of Chondrus crispus, made by Anna Atkins using the cyanotype process. It's a striking image: white algae forms set against a deep blue ground. Now, the cyanotype is an early form of photography, relying on the interaction of light and treated paper. To make this image, Atkins would have carefully arranged the algae directly on the paper, then exposed it to sunlight. The areas covered by the algae remained white, while the exposed parts turned that distinctive Prussian blue. What’s remarkable is that Atkins wasn’t just making art, she was making science. She created this image as part of a larger project to document British algae. In doing so, she collapsed the boundaries between artistic expression, scientific observation, and the then-emerging technology of photography. The cyanotype, originally a tool for engineers and architects to reproduce drawings, became, in her hands, a means of both documentation and aesthetic exploration. It makes you wonder about the relationship between artistic and scientific labor.