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In Search of the Blue Flower, Alexander Hamilton and The Art of Cyanotype

The first book in the Scottish Photographic Artists Series celebrates the 50-year career of the artist Alexander Hamilton. His work within the medium of cyanotype has led to international exhibitions, residencies, and public art projects. The book charts his beginning, from his early inspiration of the Caithness landscape, to his time at Edinburgh College of Art and the impact of the landmark exhibition Strategy: Get Arts (1970), where he assisted artists such as Joseph Beuys, Stefan Wewerka, and Blinky Palermo.

Hamilton recounts his first residency on the remote Island of Stroma in the Pentland Firth in 1973, and his journey takes us to New York and Paris, and then returning to establish his studio in Scotland. Throughout this period, he has sought to work with plants; to share their stories by revealing their unique presence with the medium of cyanotype. 

The book has contributions from leading curators and academics who have written about his work, including Mike Ware, James Berry, Richard Ovenden, Christian Weikop, Vanessa Sellars, Euan McArthur, Julie Lawson, Gemma Rolls-Bentley, Howard Hull, Jaromir Jedlinski, Piotr Tryjanowski, Christine Gunn, and Sara Stevenson 

The publication contains a comprehensive selection of his unique cyanotypes, starting from the beginning of his engagement with the medium in 1971, to the work he completed at a residency in 2018.

It is a lavishly illustrated book of 168 pages with 136 colour illustrations. 

Alexander Hamilton creates stunningly beautiful works of art.
His photography has, for decades, explored the potential
of the cyanotype process. This approach, rooted in the
pre-history of photography, uses photosensitive paper and
solutions that are exposed to sunlight. The results can be
serendipitous but Hamilton’s metier, his extraordinary skill,
crafts the most subtle and exquisite images.

‘In Search of the Blue Flower’ foregrounds Hamilton’s
wonderful cyanotypes. The imagery is complemented by
a self-penned essay that details his remarkable history as
an artist, and the intellectual roots of his work. A number
of related essays by academics, scholars and curators
completes this memorable publication. A rightful tribute to
an exceptional artist.

Dr Tom Normand HRSA
Honorary Research Fellow
School of Art History
University of St Andrews

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