Um Passo à Frente
Erin Patton McFarren
August 1-September 15, 2025
Opening Reception: August 1, 6-9pm
Free and open to the public
Aurora PhotoCenter, Efroymson Gallery
1125 Brookside Avenue, Suite C9, Indianapolis
"One step forward, and you are no longer in the same place."
“Um passo à frente e você não está mais no mesmo lugar” — Chico Science
Artist Erin Patton McFarren creates large-scale cyanotypes as a means of marking time and place. Using non-toxic materials and the original 1842 recipe, her cyanotypes interact with sunlight and bodies of water, allowing shifting forms of light and movement to produce unique images on paper. In 2024, Patton McFarren was awarded the Eli Lilly Creativity Fellowship, which enabled her to spend a summer creating art along the coast of Brazil.
Patton McFarren writes of her work:
“My journey as an artist is one of movement — both physical and internal. Each place I have explored in Brazil — Itamambuca, Rio, São Paulo, São Luís do Paraitinga — has left its mark, offering new ways of working, observing, and being.
I create in conversation with my surroundings: watching waves roll in before they break, studying the changing light, and allowing the wind to guide the process. I work with nature rather than against it, embracing the elements — water, sun, and earth — to form images that echo the rolling hills, ocean tides, and shifting landscapes around me.
The presence of Iemanjá, the Great Mother of the Sea, has been a recurring force in my cyanotypes. She represents balance, protection, and the deep emotional currents that shape us. Like the ocean she embodies, my process is fluid, unpredictable, and deeply connected to the environment. My practice is about surrendering to place — allowing it to transform not only the work but the self. I arrived in Brazil without expectations, and in return, I found a version of myself that was always there, waiting to surface.”
In conjunction with the exhibition, Erin will lead the workshop Fabric & Wet Cyanotype, on August 23, 1-4pm. In the workshop, we will mix and apply light sensitive chemistry on a 16-inch cotton handkerchief. You will then create a composition on the fabric using flowers and plants we will have on hand, or bring your own objects to use in your composition. After exposing the image you will have a unique fabric cyanotype featuring the brilliant blue color that is the hallmark of the process. A wet cyanotype begins like a traditional cyanotype, with objects such as leaves and flowers placed on the sensitized surface. Then, dry pigments are applied, followed by a spray of dyes and soap bubbles. The piece is wrapped in plastic wrap and exposed to sunlight, allowing swirling liquids and blending colors to create dynamic, organic patterns. For more information and to register for the workshop, click here.
Erin Patton McFarren’s creative practice is rooted in meditation, driven by constant exploration, process, and experimentation. As an award-winning educator, she teaches Visual Arts to young learners using the Reggio Emilia approach and shares the cyanotype process through workshops at ARTLINK Gallery, ACRES Land Trust, and the Aurora PhotoCenter in Indianapolis.
Her work is collected internationally and has been featured in exhibitions such as Art IN the Abstract at the Indiana State Museum and The National: Best Contemporary Photography at the Fort Wayne Museum of Art (FWMoA). Her cyanotype Saint Mary’s River is included in FWMoA’s collection of contemporary photography. She was awarded a fellowship from the Lilly Endowment to take her “traveling studio” to Brazil during the summer of 2024. Recent commercial collaborations include cyanotypes created for unique locations with Chicago’s Johalla Projects and Locol Arts in Orlando, Florida.
Annual operating support for Aurora PhotoCenter provided by the City of Indianapolis through the Indy Arts Council. Additional annual support provided by the Efroymson Family Fund, Joy of Giving Something Foundation, Inc., Aurora Members, and donors who believe in Aurora’s mission.