Re: Photography & Blind kids (morphed from 500W Halogen lamps instead of a flourescent box?)

Ehud,
The only source I know of for solarplate is www.solarplate.com (Dan
Welden's a really good guy and knows a lot about this stuff.)
I read over the Materials Safety Data Sheet -- and decided the stuff is
safe enough for classroom use. You'll want to provide some ventilation
as the wet plates are pretty stinky. Better yet, develop the plates in
another room and store them out on the porch for a few days.
No clue what it'll do to your septic tank. Ask Dan.
The plates are a UV-sensitive polymer coated onto aluminum -- or
aluminium -- north of the 48... as such, they are more permanent than
most life forms...

Barry

Ehud Yaniv wrote:

> Hi guys,
>
> This solarplate stuff sounds very cool. I could use this in my
> classroom because of the tactile nature of the image plate.
>
> I work as a special educator with 6 multiply handicapped students in a
> public high school. My students don't have good use of their hands
> and many have compromised vision. I could get them to gather things
> and place them on the solarplate for exposure. With staff help we can
> ink the plates to make the prints.
>
> Does anyone know where I can get this material in British Columbia? I
> can easily reach Vancouver. Also, does the solarplate material
> off-gas anything? Many of my students have very weak constitutions
> and we need to keep the room free of chemical contaminates. And
> finally, is the solarplate material biodegradable? Our school is on a
> septic system.
>
> Thanks for any suggestions you folks might have. It would be great to
> mix my interest in photography with my work as a special educator.
>
> I have reserved the book, Printmaking in the Sun from the library so I
> hope to answer some of my own questions.
>
> Ehud
>
> Circles of Confusion Photography
> www.circlesofconfusion.ca <http://www.circlesofconfusion.ca>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> *From:* Barry Kleider [mailto:bkleider@sihope.com]
> *Sent:* Friday, January 21, 2005 9:58 PM
> *To:* alt-photo-process-l@sask.usask.ca
> *Subject:* Photography & Blind kids (morphed from 500W Halogen lamps
> instead of a flourescent box?)
>
> Joe,
>
> Oh, fun solarplate! Yes! I get it.
>
> What did your kids think about it?
>
> About a year ago, I was asked to teach photography to some work with
> both blind and low-vision kids at the Minnesota State Academy for the
> blind in Faribault.
>
> We gave cameras to 18 kids. The kids also got to make solarplates from
> their favorite picture. It was a HUGE experience for me... I had to
> completely deconstruct everything I knew about photography and figure
> out why and how we do what we do.
>
> I'm getting ready to go back to work with the same group of kids
> again. In fact, I start on Monday. On Thursday I'll be teaching blind
> kids about the different qualities of light. (After all, how can you
> talk about photography if you never mention light? And what more
> arcane thing to discuss if you happen to be blind?)
>
> What a gas!
>
> Barry
>
> Joe Smigiel wrote:
>
>>>>>bkleider@sihope.com 01/21/05 10:47 PM >>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>I'm using blueprint paper for work with some of my younger students and
>>solarplates with a group of blind kids...
>>Barry
>>
>>Kewl. Please tell me more Barry (either on or offlist). I did some
>>similar things for several years with The Art Education Camp For
>>Students With Visual Impairments in Greenville Michigan a few years ago
>>and had a blast. Here's a scan of one of the Solarplate photograms one
>>of the kids did:
>>
>>http://puma.kvcc.edu/photo/images/CT_solarplate.jpg
>>
>>I'd be interested in comparing notes and experiences with you.
>>
>>Joe
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
Received on Sat Jan 22 01:42:06 2005