LAR 381R / U D 381E
Wed 9:00am – 12:00pm, SUT 3.126
Open to all ARC students, all LAR students, and all U D students
Phoebe Lickwar: plickwar@utexas.edu
Pencil of Nature is an exploration of photography as a form of image-based inquiry that engages the dynamic living systems of landscape. The title of the course is taken from a phrase first used in 1839 to describe the Daguerreotype, one of the earliest photographic processes, and later used by William Henry Fox Talbot as the title for his book of photogenic drawings published in 1844. At its origins, photography was understood as a process that perfected drawing with superior accuracy and fidelity, recording a direct imprint of physical reality using light-sensitive chemical emulsions applied to a paper substrate. Camera-less photography, where objects or plants were placed on paper coated with light sensitive emulsion, referenced the materials qualities of landscape in a new way that was both literal and abstract at the same time.
This course draws upon the examples of 19th century photographers and contemporary artists to engage students in place-based research using camera-less techniques such as cyanotype. Students will develop skills in camera-less image making and hone their creative practice through weekly exercises conducted in the field. The semester will culminate in a final project that investigates the environmental history, ecology, and climate of a local site, exploring the potential of camera-less photography to develop new relational concepts and forms. Course meetings will include site visits, lectures, and visits to the Harry Ransom Center.
