Pretty, Permanent: Handmade platinum prints could remain beautiful for 1,000 years
Fine art photographer Keith Dotson is excited to announce that he is now offering limited edition, handmade platinum/palladium prints on 100% cotton paper that was made in Europe especially for this purpose.
Platinum/palladium prints are considered by many to be the pinnacle of fine art photographic printing, and the combination of archival paper and noble metals means that the prints will resist fading if handled properly.
Unlike silver gelatin prints, in which a silver solution sits in a gelatin emulsion on top of the photo paper, platinum prints have no emulsion, allowing the paper's surface to remain absolutely matte.
Buy a platinum/palladium print here
Above: A print with the painterly edge revealed, and with it hidden, as would be the case with a cut mat window.
Above: A close-up image of an actual platinum/palladium print illustrates the paper's texture, the painterly edge around the image area, and the warm gray coloration of the print.
Heirloom pieces of art
Imagine buying a piece of art that could potentially remain in the possession of your heirs forever. The grandchildren of your grandchildren's grandchildren could gaze upon the same art that you will admire in your home today.
To make these special prints, Dotson mixes the light sensitive chemistry himself, with solutions of platinum and palladium, both considered noble metals -- they will never tarnish, rust, or fade.
Then he carefully paints the solution onto the surface of a sheet of high-quality 100% cotton rag paper. But not just any paper will do. These papers are especially made for this type of printmaking at legacy paper mills in Germany and France.
Platinum/palladium prints feature a distinctive look — there are no real blacks. Overall, the tone of the prints can range from warm brown to dark warm gray. The color of a print's finish can be effected by the precise mixture of the chemistry, the temperature of the developing bath, and even the humidity in the air at the time of printing.
The act of painting on the chemistry creates a "painterly edge," with visible brush strokes around the edges of the photograph. Many people find them appealing, but they can also be covered over with a picture mat.
Each print is a labor of love that takes nearly two hours to make from start to finish.
Above: "Collection of Antique Woodblock Letters," a platinum/palladium print of a photograph by Keith Dotson.
Limited editions, with each print a unique work of art
Even though each photograph will be offered in editions of eight, each print will be truly unique because of the variations of painted edges and the other factors mentioned above.
Prices will increase as editions sell
The prices of each collectible photograph will rise as each number of editions sells.
Specifics and details
- Limited to an edition of 8
- Signed, dated, and numbered in pencil on the back
- Sizes vary
- Print only - sold without frame, mat, or mount
- Real chemical platinum/palladium print
- Printed by hand on Hahnemühle Platine Rag (100-percent cotton paper made in Germany) or Arches Platine made in France
- Comes to you carefully packaged
- Ships in 3-5 business days
- Free insured shipping inside the US
NOTE: The actual coloration of the tones in the image may vary slightly from the photograph shown, due to screen color variations. We've done our best to give an accurate representation of the print.
Because of the handmade nature of the printing process, every print — even those made from the identical negative — is unique.
Above: "Skull of a Texas Longhorn, Granger, Texas," a photograph by Keith Dotson printed with platinum/palladium on 100% cotton rag paper made in Germany.
Platinum/palladium print of an abandoned old grain elevator in a small town in the American south. Edition of 8 plus two artist proofs. Image area 6 x 9 inches, signed, dated, and numbered on the back. Buy a print here.
Platinum/palladium print of Keith Dotson's photograph of an old farmhouse in the American South, surrounded by big barren winter trees. Buy a fine art print here.
Buy a platinum/palladium print here
This blog post only shows some of the available prints. More prints are available at the link above and more will be added over time.
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