Long shrouded in secrecy, alchemy is now recognized as the ancestor of modern chemistry. Alchemists were notorious for attempting to make synthetic gold, but their goals were far more ambitious: to transform and bend nature to the will of an industrious human imagination. For scientists, philosophers, and artists alike, alchemy seemed to hold the key to unlocking the secrets of creation.
Alchemists’ efforts to discover the way the world is made have had an enduring impact on artistic practice and expression around the globe. Inventions born from alchemical laboratories include metal alloys for sculpture and ornament, oil paints, effects in glass making, and even the chemical baths of photography.
The mysterious art of alchemy transformed visual culture from antiquity to the Industrial Age, and its legacy still permeates the world we make today. Moreover, some artists’ interests went beyond the practical chemical operations involved in the production of pigments as they became involved in the more spiritual and theoretical aspects of alchemy.
Robert Sepehr is an anthropologist and author http://amazon.com/Robert-Sepehr/e/B00XTAB1YC/ Thank you for supporting Atlantean Gardens! https://www.patreon.com/user?u=5703352
Robert Sepehr is an anthropologist and author http://amazon.com/Robert-Sepehr/e/B00XTAB1YC/ Thank you for supporting Atlantean Gardens! https://www.patreon.com/user?u=5703352
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