Artist Spotlight: Paula McIntosh

MEET PAULA MCINTOSH

Based in Charleston, South Carolina, Paula is especially drawn to flowers, trees, water, changing light, and the familiar landscape of the Lowcountry. Paula McIntosh creates photographs and hand-printed cyanotypes inspired by the natural details she notices around her. Each cyanotype begins with one of her original photographs and is individually coated, exposed, washed, and finished by hand.

So lets dive in and expose the inner workings of her studio process (pun intended)!

MG: How did you first get into photography and cyanotypes?

PM: Photography was a hobby of mine long before I started selling my work. Years ago, I put my interior design career on what I thought would be a temporary hold, and during that time I picked up my camera more and more. It snowballed very naturally, and here we are. Cyanotypes came much later.

MG: What drew you specifically to cyanotype?

PM: The blue. I was working on a collection of photographs that I had decided to digitally edit into blue and white, inspired by cyanotypes. Somewhere along the way I thought, I should just actually print these as cyanotypes.  So I did, and I loved the quality of those prints so much that I released the collection both ways, as cyanotypes and as digitally edited blue and white photographic prints.

That collection really changed the direction of my work. I started experimenting with more photographs, learning which ones translate well into cyanotype, and figuring out how to edit the negatives to get the contrast I want. Now I find myself taking photographs specifically with cyanotype in mind.

And I keep coming back to that Prussian blue. It’s the perfect, timeless blue.  

MG: How do you choose the photographs or subjects that eventually become cyanotypes?

PM: Light is probably the biggest thing.

I’m drawn to so many of the everyday things we’re lucky to be surrounded by here in Charleston. Trees, flowers, the ocean, the marshes, historic architecture. But what makes me stop and take a photograph is usually the way the light is moving through or across something. The contrast, shadows, lines, texture, and patterns catch my eye.

Not every photograph works as a cyanotype, though. I love the contrast and brightness in a really beautiful cyanotype print, so I’m always looking for images that will hold onto that clarity and detail rather than becoming moody or muddy.

MG: What is your process from the original photograph to the finished piece?

PM: I start with one of my photographs and edit it to create a digital negative that I print on transparent film.  I hand-brush cyanotype chemistry onto cotton rag watercolor paper, let it dry, expose it in the sun pressed beneath the negative, and then rinse and dry the print to reveal the image.

From there, the finishing depends on the piece. Some stay as works on paper, some are framed, some are mounted to wood panels, and some are painted before they’re finished.

MG: How does your interior design background influence your work?

PM: Interior design trained me to think about the way things relate to one another. That way of seeing things has never gone away.

It also made me appreciate things that have staying power. Things that feel classic, but not boring or predictable.  I’ve always loved to blend styles and believe that if you genuinely love something, it can have a place in your home. I think that carries into the work I make.  I keep coming back to familiar subjects, composition and contrast, and this very classic blue and white palette, but with a handmade quality.

I love when someone looks at one of my cyanotypes and asks if it’s a photograph or a painting. I think both interiors and art should make you pause for a second to take it in.

MG: What inspires you around Charleston and the Low-country?

PM: Charleston has inspired me since we first moved here about fifteen years ago. There’s this incredible mix of history, architecture, and natural beauty, but I think what I notice most is the light.

There is something special about the light here, and the way it moves through the trees or reflects off the marsh can make something you see every day suddenly look completely different.

And I always come back to the live oak trees. I love the tangled branches, the negative spaces between them, the leaves and shadows.

MG: What are you working on now, and what are you experimenting with?

PM: Lately I’ve been experimenting with photographing shadows rather than the object itself, letting the shadow become the subject of the photograph.  

I’m also continuing to play with adding painted details. I’ve added paint to a few collections now, sometimes just to add a detail back in and sometimes a little more boldly. I like the process of stripping a photograph down to blue and white and then deciding what color, if any, to bring back.

MG: Is there anything you want collectors to know about the handmade nature of the work?

PM: The handmade part is what I really love about cyanotype.

I brush the chemistry onto the paper by hand and you can see those brushstrokes around the edges. I prefer to expose my prints in the sun instead of a UV lamp, which means the season, time of day and conditions all become part of the process and can change the look of the print.

There are so many opportunities for subtle variation along the way, and that’s part of what makes them special. Each piece is truly one of one.  

To explore all of Paula's work, you can view her collection here. Please contact info@themillergallery.com with any questions!