Patrick C. Sullivan is a wet plate photographer whose work bridges the past and present. Through meticulous technique and a deep respect for photographic history, he creates singular images that capture the haunting beauty and tactile depth unique to the wet plate collodion process. Each piece is hand-crafted — from the careful pouring of collodion onto a glass or aluminum plate, through the exposure, to the final development and varnishing — resulting in images that are as much artifacts as they are portraits.
This wet plate practice was shaped by time spent at the home of John Coffer, the man who breathed new life into the collodion process first born in 1851 through the work of Frederick Scott Archer. Time on John’s farm feels almost suspended — where the modern world fades and the quiet magic of chemistry and light takes center stage. His workshops are not merely lessons but pilgrimages, guiding you to see beyond the surface of an image and into the soul of the process. It was there that Patrick learned to slow his hands, trust the flow of silver, and embrace the imperfections that make each plate unique. That experience still echoes through every image — a quiet dialogue between past and present.
