What does cyanotype mean?
A cyanotype is a photographic print distinguished by its striking Prussian-blue colour, produced through one of the oldest photographic processes still in widespread use. Paper or fabric is coated with a solution of iron salts, an object or negative is placed on the surface, and exposure to sunlight or ultraviolet light triggers a chemical reaction that yields a deep blue image after rinsing in plain water. Invented by the English scientist John Herschel in 1842, the process was quickly adopted by botanist Anna Atkins, whose 1843 book of algae photographs is widely regarded as the first photobook. Today cyanotype is prized by artists, photographers, and educators alike: it is inexpensive, non-toxic by modern formulations, forgiving for beginners, and capable of rich tonal effects. The word also denotes the process itself. Its best-known relative, the blueprint, adapted the same chemistry to copying architectural drawings.
nounA cyanotype is a photographic print made by a process that produces a distinctive Prussian-blue image, typically created by exposing paper treated with iron salts to ultraviolet light and then washing it in water. The term also refers to the photographic process itself, invented in the 1840s and still used in art and craft contexts.
- A photographic print with a characteristic Prussian-blue image, produced by exposing light-sensitive iron-salt-coated paper to sunlight or UV light and rinsing it in water.
- The photographic process itself (also called the cyanotype process), invented by John Herschel in 1842.
"She hung her cyanotype of fern leaves on the studio wall, its deep blue tones deepening as it dried."
"The artist coated each sheet by hand, then laid pressed flowers on the sensitized paper to make delicate cyanotypes."
"Anna Atkins's cyanotypes of British algae are often cited as the earliest published photographs used for scientific illustration."
Standard plural, referring to multiple individual prints.
"The gallery acquired twelve of her early cyanotypes."
The world's first photobook was illustrated entirely with cyanotypes: Anna Atkins's 1843 study of algae, printed before photography even had a settled name.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of cyanotype
The word cyanotype combines the Greek-derived combining form 'cyano-', from 'kyanos', meaning dark-blue enamel or lapis lazuli, with '-type', from Greek 'typos', meaning impression or mark. It was coined in English in the mid-nineteenth century following Sir John Herschel's invention of the process in 1842. Related words sharing the 'cyano-' root include cyan, cyanic, and the medical term cyanosis.
How cyanotype is actually used
Cyanotype is a moderately technical word, most at home in discussions of art, alternative photography, and photographic history. In everyday use, the closely related 'blueprint' is far more familiar; 'sun print' is the common casual name for the child-friendly version of the process. The plural 'cyanotypes' refers to individual prints.
Easily confused with cyanotype
A blueprint is specifically a technical or architectural drawing reproduced by a related blue-image process, whereas a cyanotype is any image — artistic or otherwise — made by the cyanotype process, which predates and underlies the blueprint.