Introduction to Alternative Analogue Darkroom Techniques Workshop

What to Expect

This two day workshop introduces alternative, cameraless photographic processes under the guidance of artist Christine Mackey, who holds a practice-based PhD from the University of Ulster, is a Fulbright Research Scholar alumna, and has exhibited internationally, including a recent solo show at The Model in Sligo. Participants work through four techniques across the weekend, cyanotype, the nineteenth-century process that uses sunlight and iron-based chemicals to produce blue monochrome prints, anthotype, an eco-friendly method using light-sensitive emulsions made from crushed plants, berries or flowers, lumen printing, which exposes organic matter directly onto light-sensitive paper for thirty to ninety minutes or more, and phytogram, which uses plant chemistry to interact directly with film or paper. Alongside the four core processes, the course covers making acetate negatives, alternative contact printing methods, and producing film negatives suitable for scanning at home afterwards. The course suits complete beginners as well as more experienced photographers who want to move beyond a conventional darkroom setup, since the emphasis throughout is on experimentation rather than a single correct result, and the small group size means Mackey can work closely with each participant as their results emerge.

Good to Know

• Dates: Saturday 15 and Sunday 16 August 2026, a two day course
• Venue: Leitrim Sculpture Centre, New Line, Manorhamilton, Co. Leitrim
• Price: €240 per person, maximum 5 participants
• Materials supplied include potassium ferricyanide, ferric ammonium citrate, plant-based emulsions, paper, fabric, organic objects and light-sensitive paper
• Accommodation on site is available separately at €35 per night, email the centre after booking to check availability
• Booking: via Eventbrite, linked from the centre’s own workshop page
• Recurrence: a one-off two day course, not a repeating weekly class, the centre runs a different one-off workshop most months
• Contact: 071 9855098 or info@leitrimsculpturecentre.ie

Getting There

Leitrim Sculpture Centre is on New Line in Manorhamilton, on the N16 Sligo to Enniskillen road, roughly 30 minutes from Sligo town and 20 minutes from Carrick-on-Shannon by car.

While You’re in Manorhamilton

Manorhamilton is a market town in north Leitrim, set where several valleys meet, close to the Dartry mountains. There is more to see in Manorhamilton and across Co. Leitrim.