Early on artists saw the potential of holography as a medium and
gained access to science laboratories to create their work. Holographic
art is often the result of collaborations between scientists and
artists, although some "holographers" would regard themselves as both an
artist and scientist.
Salvador Dalí claimed to have been the first
to employ holography artistically. He was certainly the first and
best-known surrealist to do so, but the 1972 New York exhibit of Dalí
holograms had been preceded by the holographic art exhibition which was
held at the Cranbrook Academy
of Art in Michigan in 1968 and by the one at the Finch College
gallery in New York in 1970, which attracted national media attention.
During the 1970s a number of arts studios and schools were
established, each with their particular approach to holography. Notably
there was the San Francisco School of holography established by Llyod
Cross, The Museum of Holography in New York founded by Rosemary (Possie)
H. Jackson, the Royal College of Art in London and the Lake Forest
College Symposiums organized by Tung Jeong (T.J). None of these studios still exist,
however there is the Center for the Holographic Arts in New York and the HOLOcenter in Seoul which offer artists a place to create and exhibit
work.
A small but active group of artists use holography as their main
medium and many more artists integrate holographic elements into their
work. The MIT Museum and Jonathan Ross both have extensive collections of holography and
on-line catalogues of art holograms
Hobbyist use
“Peace Within Reach” a Denisyuk DCG hologram by amateur Dave Battin.
Since the beginning of holography, experimenters have explored the
uses of holography. Starting in 1971 Lloyd
Cross started the San Francisco School of Holography and started to
teach amateurs the methods of making holograms with inexpensive
equipment. This method relied on the use of a large table of deep sand
to hold the optics
rigid and damp vibrations that would destroy the image.
Many of these holographers would go on to produce art holograms. In
1983, Fred Unterseher published the Holography Handbook, a remarkably
easy to read description of making holograms at home. This brought in a
new wave of holographers and gave simple methods to use the then
available AGFA silver halide recording materials.
In 2000 Frank DeFreitas published the Shoebox
Holography Book and introduced using inexpensive laser
pointers to countless hobbyists. This was a very important development for
amateurs as the cost for a 5mw laser dropped from $1200 to $5 as
semiconductor laser diodes reached mass market. Now there are hundreds
to thousands of amateur holographers worldwide.
In 2006 a large number of surplus Holography Quality Green Lasers
(Coherent C315) became available and put Dichromated Gelatin (DCG)
within the reach of the amateur holographer. The holography community
was surprised at the amazing sensitivity of DCG to green light. It
had been assumed that the sensitivity would be non existent. Jeff Blythe
responded with the G307 formulation of DCG to increase the speed and
sensitivity to these new lasers.
Many film suppliers have come and gone from the silver halide market.
While more film manufactures have filled in the voids, many amateurs
are now making their own film. The favorite formulations are Dichromated
Gelatin, Methylene Blue Sensitised Dichromated Gelatin and Diffusion
Method Silver Halide preparations. Jeff Blythe has published very
accurate methods for making film in a small lab or garage.
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