The Sunderland Collection Original Print: Celestial Dreams
This fine art print series is inspired by iconic images from a seminal work by Johann Bayer (1572-1625): Uranometria Omnium Asterismorum Continens Schemata, or Measuring the Heavens, containing Charts of all the Constellations (1639)
First published in 1603, the Uranometria was one of the most elegant and influential celestial achievements of the period. Renowned for its cartographic precision and artistic beauty, the work presents a comprehensive, pre-telescopic vision of the heavens. It is the first European printed atlas to plot the complete celestial sphere, showing over 2,000 stars.
The Uranometria compiles Bayer's astute observations of the cosmos, merging precise stellar positions with artistic rendering of the constellations. Some scholars cite Bayer's work as the ‘first complete star atlas’ to be produced in Europe.
The Uranometria painstakingly illustrates the 48 constellations described by Claudius Ptolemy (c.100-170 CE) in his work on atronomy, the Almagest. Bayer’s image of the constellations in the Northern Hemisphere is based on the work of Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe (1546-1601).
The Sunderland Collection worked with master printer Kristina Chan at Plaintiff Press to reimagine six of Bayer’s beloved plates.
Five of these feature details of Northern Hemisphere constellations - Corvus (the crow), Cygnus (the swan), Draco, Delphinius, and Equus Minor (the small horse).
The sixth print is taken from Bayer’s plate of the Southern Hemisphere, representing one of the earliest European efforts to map southern stars with precision.
Like the original plates in Bayer’s Uranometria and indeed many of the works in The Sunderland Collection, each print in this series was made using a traditional engraving method, a form of Intaglio print.
This process is the opposite of relief printing. A sharp metal tool called a burrin is used to incise the design into the plate. Ink is then applied to it and collects into the incisions. Once the ink is wiped away from the surface, it only remains in the areas which have been cut away. The design is then pressed onto paper with a printing press.
Modern technology has allowed Bayer’s original imagery to be digitally scanned and then transposed - or 'carved' - onto the surface of a polymer printing plate. The plate is then hand-inked individually, and run by hand through a vintage printing press before being hand-finished with highlights. This means that every edition is unique.
Photography by Kristina Chan ©The Sunderland Collection
Our prints are crafted using traditional techniques on a mid-century press with a keen focus on authenticity and materiality.
Glowing lithographic gradient base layers capture the hues of sunrise and sunset, while hand-coloured accents and gold highlights lend an extra dimension of distinction to each starry piece.
Full Sized Prints
Draco
Draco the dragon is a large and winding constellation situated in the far northern sky. Because goes around the North Pole, it coils between Ursa Major and Ursa Minor and remains visible throughout the entire year. The brightest star in Daco is Eltanin (Gamma Draconis).
Lithographic gradient with full bleed Intaglio print and hand-coloured detailing on archival Somerset Satin White 300 gsm paper. 38 x 38 cm.
Edition of 50.
£ 200 (not including tax or duty). International delivery available.
Available for purchase here.
Cygnus
Cygnus the swan is a notable constellation positioned along the plane of the Milky Way. Recognisable by its distinctive cross shape, Cygnus is most visible in the Northern Hemisphere throughout the Summer and Autumn months. In Greek mythology, this celestial swan represents Zeus in disguise on his way to a scandalous affair with Leda.
Lithographic gradient with full bleed à la poupée Intaglio print on archival Somerset Satin White 300 gsm paper. 38 x 38 cm.
Edition of 50.
£ 200 (not including tax or duty). International delivery available.
Available for purchase here.
The Southern Hemisphere
Maps of the Southern skies remained largely blank until the publication of Uranometria, despite the critical need for up-to-date celestial charts to guide European explorers sailing across the globe from the late fifteenth to the seventeenth centuries. Bayer’s atlas introduced a 49th plate, representing one of the earliest European efforts to depict the stars of the southern hemisphere accurately.
Edition of 50
Lithographic gradient with full bleed Intaglio print and hand-coloured detailing on archival Somerset Satin 300gsm paper.
38 x 38 cm.
£ 200 (not including tax or duty). International delivery available.
Available for purchase here.
Mini Prints
Corvus
Corvus the crow is a constellation in the Southern Hemisphere, associated with stories about the god Apollo.
Full bleed Intaglio print with hand-coloured accents on archival Somerset Satin White 300gsm paper. 12 x 12 cm.
Edition of 50.
£ 50 (not including tax or duty). International delivery available.
Available for purchase here.
Delphinus
Delphinus is a Northern Hemisphere constellation depicted as a dolphin, and one of the smallest but most recognisable constellations in the night sky.
Full-bleed, three-colour à la poupée Intaglio print with hand-coloured accents, on archival BFK Rives Grey 290gsm paper. 12 x 12 cm.
Edition of 50.
£ 50 (not including tax or duty). International delivery available.
Available for purchase here.
Equus Minor
Equus Minor, or the little horse is a depicted adjacent to Pegasus and is the night sky's second-smallest constellation!
Full-bleed Intaglio print with hand-coloured accents on archival Somerset Satin White 300 gsm paper. 12 x 12 cm.
Edition of 50.
£ 50 (not including tax or duty). International delivery available.
Available for purchase here.
A special price of £140 for a set of all three (not including taxes or duty).
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