Symphony in blue.

For my cyanotype experiments to begin I had either to hope that the sun would shine brightly for me or buy myself a reliable and constant UV light source.  As the search began I quickly found that UV light boxes where expensive.  Not perturbed I searched for instructions on how to make myself a homemade alternative.

This search began on YouTube where I found how to build a UV light box from a facial tanner and a housing unit constructed from plywood.  £20 later I had the makings of my light box.

​https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nqcLfHPmM6o

With light box constructed and plaster tiles prepared I needed to test my light box by making a test strip to determine exposure times.

​​Happy with the result of the test strip which was made on Fabriano 5 paper I decided to try out the experiment plaster surface.  

Before applying cyanotype sensitiser to the plaster it is important to size the plaster for a couple of reasons.  Firstly, if you do not the image will just wash off the plaster.  Secondly, plaster is an alkaline surface and cyanotypes prefer an acid surface.  

​My first experimental plaster shows less contrast compared to the test strip and I think that the experimental size is the reason why.  It has also created distortions in the image.
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The next step will be to experiment with different plaster sealers and record the results to determine the best size fit for purpose
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