Dedicated to
Sam Wang, John Jackson,
and Sandy King,
my partners
in cyanotype research

Figure P.1. Veneration, from the Untamed series, traditional cyanotype stained with Lipton tea on Japanese Kitakata paper, 16″ × 20″ © Jaime Aelavanthara 2014. “Poet Mary Oliver stated, ‘I think when we lose the connection with the natural world, we tend to forget that we’re animals, that we need the Earth. And that can be devastating.’ Untamed articulates humankind’s capacity to decay as a marker of our identity. Set in the natural places where one confronts life and death, growth and decay, these self portraits reflect on our transient, temporal lives that are each connected through the shared human condition. I reimagine the feral woman archetype, a strong woman who collects the bones, branches, and flora and treads with the animals, both dead and living. The otherworldly narrative is emphasized through the use of the cyanotype process, which shifts focus from potentially colorful landscapes and figures to patterns, textures, and the relationships of forms within the images. Tea-staining the prints dulls the blue and adds warmth, mimicking the earth tones encountered in the wilderness. Printing on Japanese Kitakata paper, which is prone to ripping, tearing, and wrinkling during processing, reflects the deterioration of nature and adds a feeling of fragility. Displayed unframed, the tea-stained prints are reminiscent of animal hides, and the prints are fastened delicately to the walls like tanned skins. Untamed ultimately reflects upon the forms, the impermanence, and the interconnectedness of natural life.” Jaime Aelavanthara is an Assistant Professor at the University of Tampa in Photography & Foundations. She received her BFA from the University of Mississippi in Imaging Arts and her MFA in Photography from Louisiana Tech University. To see more of her work, visit JAelavanthara.com.