The Jeweled Net: Views of Contemporary Holography

The MIT Museum shows an exhibit of the art and science of holography with The Jeweled Net: Views of Contemporary Holography. The exhibition created in conjunction with the 9th International Symposium on Display Holography, co-sponsored by the MIT Museum and the MIT Media Lab. Over 20 holograms created by international artists, as well as several from the MIT Museum collections, will be on display, and will remain open to the public through September 28, 2013.

The exhibition presents a rare opportunity to view selected works from the world-wide community of practicing display holographers. The MIT Museum holds the world’s largest and most comprehensive collection of holograms and regularly invites artists to showcase new work at the Museum. "This new exhibition is an example of our expanded commitment to support public engagement with practicing artists through exhibitions and programs," says Seth Riskin, who will give talks and tours throughout the coming year in his role as the MIT Museum’s Manager of Emerging Technologies and Holography/Spatial Imaging Initiatives.

The Jeweled Net: Views of Contemporary Holography surveys state-of-the-art display holography, and showcases the artistic and technical merit of individual works of art. Selected by a panel of experts, the holograms on display represent artists from Germany, Italy, the UK, Canada, Australia, Japan, and the US. Holography has given birth to a new field of science during the past six decades, and as well, to a group of 'pioneers' who have found a new media upon which human vision in three dimensions is transferred. The rarity of holograms, their elegance, and the surprise they give to viewers leads many to question what it is that they are really seeing.

"A hologram" according to Riskin, "represents how the human brain, and light information interact to create the experience of three-dimensional space. Holography represents deeper technological access into light’s capacity as an image and information carrier."

Works on display will include a piece originally commissioned the Museum of Art and Design in New York titled My Deep Sea Adventure by Inaki Beguiristain of the United Kingdom; Anatomy Head, a multi-exposure HOE (Holographic Optical Elements) embedded between glass and mirror, created by Michael Bleyenberg of Germany; and a dichromate reflection hologram, Speed of Shadows by Sally Weber of Texas, and SonShang by Dieter Jung of Germany.

The International Symposium on Display Holography gathers people together to exchange information, share work, and engender a sense of community among the world’s practitioners of holography. The Symposium highlights holograms that synthesize the field’s history, and its developments in the areas of education, art, science, and economic development. Additional exhibition space will be provided at the MIT Media Lab during the Symposium, June 26-29, 2012 for attendees to share their work in a more informal, uncurated setting. Co-chaired by Seth Riskin and Michael Bove, the Symposium is presented by the MIT Museum and the MIT Media Lab.