Alexander Hamilton (artist)


Alexander Hamilton is an artist, publisher and series editor for Studies in Photography books, distributed by Edinburgh University Press. He is the chair of the Scottish Society for the History of Photography. As an artist, his chosen medium is cyanotype. He has exhibited widely within the UK, Europe and the US, and his work is held at the National Science and Media Museum. A monograph of his life and work,, will be published in 2022.

Life

Alexander Hamilton grew up in the Midlands, England and moved to Caithness, Scotland in 1962. He began studying Drawing and Painting at Edinburgh College of Art (ECA) in 1968, and in 1970, as a gallery assistant during Strategy Get Arts, he came under the influence of the participating artists. Following graduation from ECA in 1972, he spent six months recording plants on the uninhabited island of Stroma in Caithness. This began his 50-year journey of creating unique plant-based cyanotypes.

Work

Alexander Hamilton’s artworks offer a visual response to environmental and ecological concerns. The focus of his work is plant life and his relationship to it. He has explored environmental issues ranging from airborne pollution to plant pathology and phenology.
Throughout his career, he has pursued a program of exhibitions, public art projects and residencies, including large-scale sculptures and multi-screen installations, all developing on and perfecting his cyanotype practice.

Selected exhibitions

Collections and commissions

  • National Science and Media Museum
  • Foksal Gallery Collection in MoMA Warsaw Collection, Poland
  • Seed Chamber, Greenmarket Dundee
  • Glass Panel, Dunbeath Heritage Centre

Journal articles

  • Winter 2017, Interview by Jane Mackie in Studies in Photography
  • 2020, "Plants as effective bioindicators of urban air pollution," Leaves
  • 2020, "Goethe and Ruskin talking about plants," ''Leaves''