Prussian Blue was first made accidentally in 1704, from ox blood or other animal bits, by near-alchemical procedures. Although the substance has been studied for over 250 years, it was only in 1842 that Sir John Herschel created the cyanotype as the first successful non-silver photographic printing process. This process was used for the first photographically illustrated book. Being simple, cheap and fairly permanent, it also enjoyed an extended period of commercial success as the blueprint process for copying drawing-office plans.

Today, the cyanotype process is used to create hand-coated alternative printing. The distinctive blue color results in an image that holds texture and is distinctly different than a traditional black and white print.

The images in this gallery are created with the new cyanotype process created by Mike Ware. The chemistry is hand-coated onto Bergger or Arches Platine paper and then contact-printed under ultraviolet lights.