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Hi, I’m Jo Howell, an artist working with photography, cyanotype and a healthy amount of experimentation. I’m always interested in finding ways to take photography off the wall and turn it into something physical, tactile and, ideally, a little bit unexpected.

This project is a perfect example.

I made a cyanotype folding fan — part photographic artwork, part functional object, part wall decoration and, frankly, a fairly good way of dealing with increasingly ridiculous summer temperatures.

I only made two of these fans in 2025, but I’m planning to revisit the idea because there is definitely more I want to explore with the design.

And yes, I have already considered the possibility of an exhibition called Only Fans.

More on that shortly.

What did I make?

I transformed two large Chinese folding fans into cyanotype artworks, using cyanotype photography and gold acrylic pen to decorate the surface.

The idea was to take something traditionally decorative and turn it into a photographic object — something that could either hang on a wall as artwork or be picked up and actually used as a fan.

This sits within my larger ongoing investigation into presenting photography as 3D objects. I’m interested in what happens when a photograph stops being something you simply look at on a flat surface and becomes something you can fold, hold, move, wear or interact with.

The folding fan seemed like a particularly good candidate.

Why did I make a cyanotype fan?

There are several reasons.

Number one: it has been insanely hot for the last few summers, so I needed a practical and fashionable way to beat the heat.

Number two: decorative fans can take up wall space in much the same way as traditional artwork or antique fans.

And number three: you could call the exhibition Only Fans.

Imagine the disappointment when some blokes turn up expecting something completely different and discover that the exhibition is literally just fans.

Only fans.

I just thought of a number four: they fold down, so they’re incredibly easy to store when they aren’t hanging on the wall.

So really, the fan ticks quite a lot of boxes.

Who is the artwork for?

The fans are part of my wider experimentation with photography as a three-dimensional medium.

I’m always looking for new ways to push cyanotype into areas where you might not normally expect to find it. Cyanotype is often associated with prints on paper or fabric, but I’m interested in asking what else it can become.

A lot of my ideas start with something playful, silly or based around a joke or a play on words. But the making process is where the idea starts to develop into something more meaningful.

For me, that’s an important part of experimentation.

An idea doesn’t necessarily have to begin seriously to end up somewhere interesting.

These fans are essentially working prototypes for much bigger ideas. They allow me to experiment with how cyanotype behaves on an unusual surface, how photography can become an object, and how an artwork can exist somewhere between being functional and purely decorative.

When did I make them?

I made both fans at the same time in Spring 2025, while looking ahead towards summer.

Given the temperatures we’ve been experiencing, this was clearly excellent planning.

I wanted to create something that felt appropriate for summer, but also something that could have a life beyond simply being a seasonal object.

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How to make a cyanotype folding fan

If you fancy making your own, here’s how I did it.

You will need:

• A blank folding fan
• PVA glue
• Water
• Wet-strength tissue paper
• Scissors
• A cyanotype kit
• Acrylic pens

Step 1 — Make your cyanotype

First, create a cyanotype to the size of the fan you’re going to use.

You can use plants, photographs, objects, digital negatives — pretty much anything that you would normally use to make a cyanotype.

If you’re completely new to cyanotype, you’ll want to start there before attempting the fan. I have a separate step-by-step article explaining the cyanotype process in more detail.

The important thing here is to make sure your cyanotype is large enough to cover the fan.

Step 2 — Prepare your glue

You’ll need to make a diluted PVA mixture to attach the cyanotype to the fan.

I usually make mine at approximately 1 part PVA to 4 parts water, although you can dilute it further. Anything up to around 1:10 should work depending on the materials you’re using.

You want it thin enough to spread easily without completely soaking everything.

Step 3 — Attach the cyanotype

Open the fan out completely.

Brush your PVA mixture onto the surface of the fan first, then carefully position your cyanotype.

Smooth the cyanotype into place using more of the diluted PVA mixture.

This is definitely a stage where patience helps.

Try to smooth out the paper carefully and avoid creating unnecessary wrinkles or bubbles.

Step 4 — Let it dry

This is the bit where you need to resist the temptation to fiddle with it.

Leave the fan fully open until the cyanotype and glue are completely dry.

Don’t fold it up while it’s still wet.

Trust me.

Step 5 — Trim the excess

Once everything is completely dry, carefully cut away any excess cyanotype around the edges of the fan.

Take your time with this part. You want the cyanotype to follow the shape of the fan as neatly as possible.

If any of the edges have lifted during the drying process, you can carefully glue them back down with your PVA mixture.

Step 6 — Add some decoration

Once everything is dry, you can add additional details.

For these fans I used gold acrylic pens to draw onto the cyanotype and add another layer of decoration.

This is where you can really make the piece your own.

You could use different coloured acrylic pens, paint, patterns, text or whatever works with your cyanotype design.

Step 7 — Decide what your fan actually is

And now you have a choice.

Is it a piece of wall art?

Is it a functional fan?

Is it both?

Personally, I quite like the fact that it can be either.

When it’s hanging on the wall, it becomes a photographic artwork. When it’s hot, you can take it down and use it.

That’s exactly the sort of crossover between photography and object that I’m interested in exploring.

What’s next for the cyanotype fan?

I only made two of these in 2025, but I don’t consider the project finished.

In fact, that’s one of the things I enjoy most about making experimental work. A first attempt doesn’t necessarily have to be the final artwork. Sometimes it is simply a way of discovering what might be possible.

The fans have given me a way to explore cyanotype on a completely different kind of surface, and they’ve raised plenty of questions about where I could take the idea next.

Could they become larger?

Could they become sculptural?

Could a whole room be filled with them?

Could I actually get away with calling an exhibition Only Fans?

I suppose I’ll have to find out.

Support my work

If you enjoy following these experiments and want to see what I make next, there are a couple of ways you can support my work.

You can join me on Patreon or become a YouTube Member. Your support helps me continue making experimental artwork, developing new ideas, creating tutorials and sharing the process behind the work.

It also means I can keep making slightly ridiculous things and then finding out whether they turn into something interesting.

So thank you for reading, watching and supporting my work. Every bit of support helps me keep experimenting.

And if you make your own cyanotype fan, I’d absolutely love to see it!

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