• tea chromatogram with blue leaves filling the page like a mountain range. A tan chromatogram spreads from the bottom of the page. This rectangular print has a light wooden frame around it with small white flowers with lots of green leaves
  • tea chromatogram with blue leaves filling the page like a mountain range. A tan chromatogram spreads from the bottom of the page. This rectangular print has a light wooden frame around it.
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Tea Cyanotype and Chromatogram Giclée Print

Tea Cyanotype and Chromatogram Giclée Print

$15.00 USD
$15.00 USD
Sale Sold out

 

Soil chromatography is like taking a photo of the compounds and bacteria that make up soil and plants.

This listing is for a giclee print (aka a digitally printed copy) of a chromatogram I made for my body of work titled The Land Loves Us. You will receive an 8.5" x 11" unframed reproduction print. Note that while I have uploaded photos that match the prints' colors as closely as I can, colors may vary among different computer monitors. What appears on your monitor may not reflect the exact shades of color in the print.

Alternative Photography Experiments

In 2023, I developed a technique for bleaching and toning cyanotypes with chromatograms. Cyanotypes are photographic blueprints made using a mixture of iron- the final image is revealed after being exposed to UV light. This print is one of my early experiments, and one of my favorite examples of this novel technique. To make this print, I first took a photograph of a tea leaf and turned that into a cyanotype. Then, I layered a chromatogram of puer tea grown on Nannuo Mountain in Yunnan on top of the cyanotype, which turned the blues of the cyanotype into delicate tans with hints of peachy yellows. 

What is Soil Chromatography?

Soil chromatography is often used by farmers to qualitatively assess soil health. I’ve spent the past two and a half years widening the creative possibilities of this lesser known soil science test.

I use soil chromatography to extract the normally invisible compounds and bacteria in plants and soil, then illuminate them using silver nitrate, a classic photography chemical. Each color and striation signifies a separate compound or bacteria present in the tea, fruit, or plant I used to make the chromatograms (one-of-a-kind prints made using chromatography).

Giving Back

My work with chromatography is intrinsically related to the land, and some of my chromatograms are made using food and plants grown on stolen land. Indigenous communities are the land's strongest defenders, so 10% of each chromatogram sale gets donated to Indigenous communities. 

Free Postcard

Every purchase of a physical item receives a free postcard. One per order. The current postcards include a picture of one of my favorite chromatograms, Chinese Chive Roots and Stems, that I grew in my community garden plot in Chicago.

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