ABOUT
Hi there, I'm Ann Marie, a cyanotype artist who works at the intersection of sunlight, story, and the quiet magic of plants. Blutanicals grew from my love of flowers, my garden, and the simple joy of watching something ordinary transform under the open sky. Every piece I make begins with a botanical — something I’ve grown, gathered, or admired — and becomes a collaboration between nature and light.
Cyanotype is one of the oldest photographic processes, invented in 1842 and made famous by Anna Atkins, the pioneering naturalist often considered the first female photographer. She used cyanotype to document seaweeds, ferns, and other plant specimens with astonishing clarity and grace. Her work wasn’t just scientific; it was deeply artistic, a merging of curiosity and beauty. Carrying forward even a thread of that legacy feels like an honor — a way of participating in a lineage of women who saw the natural world as worthy of devotion and record.
In my own practice, I use cyanotype in many forms: traditional prints, botanical studies, home goods, and large-scale textiles. One of my favorite parts of the process is rescuing discarded denim and other forgotten fabrics — materials softened by time, wear, and story — and giving them a new life through sunlight and botanical silhouettes. There’s something poetic about pairing a centuries-old photographic method with textiles that have already lived a full life. The result is a kind of modern field relic: rugged, tender, and touched by the land.
My garden is at the heart of everything I make. It’s where I gather leaves and blooms, where I learn the rhythms of the seasons, and where I’m reminded that beauty is both fleeting and renewable. Each print is a moment held still — a bloom at its peak, a frond unfurling, a stem bending just so — captured in the deep, unmistakable blue of cyanotype.
Blutanicals is my way of sharing that wonder. It’s a celebration of plants, light, and the stories woven into the things we choose to keep close. Every piece is made by hand, with intention, and with gratitude for the natural world that makes it possible.