Author ORCID Identifier
Lorrie Blair
Abstract
This essay is a reflection of an artist residency focused on the environmental legacy of California’s cinnabar mining. The mineral cinnabar is a primary source of mercury that was used to mine gold in California in the 1800s, and is still used globally. For this residency, I asked, “How can I creatively map the emotional and sensory landscapes of Cinnabar mining sites?” “How can art making serve to expose elements of an ecological crisis?” To answer these questions, I created cyanotypes made in and with the Santa Ynez River, which flowed through two abandoned cinnabar mines. Cyanotypes are made by coating paper or fabric with potassium ferricyanide and ferric ammonium citrate and exposing it to the sun’s UV rays.
Recommended Citation
Blair, Lorrie
(2026)
"Mapping the Legacy of Cinnabar Mining in California's Santa Ynez River,"
Artizein: Arts and Teaching Journal: Vol. 10:
Iss.
1, Article 7.
Available at:
https://opensiuc.lib.siu.edu/atj/vol10/iss1/7
Included in
Adult and Continuing Education Commons, Aesthetics Commons, Art and Design Commons, Art Education Commons, Art Practice Commons, Audio Arts and Acoustics Commons, Curriculum and Instruction Commons, Curriculum and Social Inquiry Commons, Dance Commons, Early Childhood Education Commons, Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research Commons, Educational Methods Commons, Epistemology Commons, Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Commons, Feminist Philosophy Commons, Fine Arts Commons, Indigenous Education Commons, Other Arts and Humanities Commons, Other Education Commons, Performance Studies Commons, Photography Commons, Poetry Commons, Religion Commons