Cyanotype print on paper by Mika Means

black frame, 12”x12”

artist statement:

the soil under the grass
is dreaming of a young forest,

and under the pavement the soil
is dreaming of grass.

-From “In a Country Once Forested” by Wendell Berry

The prints in the Dream of Water series were created using river rocks unearthed from my property in Walla Walla -- rocks that were carried there by rivers and  floods, their rough edges ground and smoothed, their surfaces imprinted and shaped by the passage of time and the movement of water. 

Through multiple layers of cyanotype emulsion and water, images and silhouettes are exposed, imprinted, obscured then revealed. In a way, this process reflects the movement of these river rocks: borne by water, obscured by earth and eventually uncovered.  Do they dream of the waters that once held them?    

about the Maker: CYAN TEXTILES is a line of garments and accessories from local artist Mika Means. Mika uses the cyanotype process and draws from her fine-arts background to create beautiful and functional pieces.

Cyanotype is an alternative photographic process that uses a UV-light sensitive emulsion to create singular prints. The variation in color in each of her pieces is a natural part of this unique printing process.