Holography

Holography (from the Greek, Όλος-holos whole + γραφή-graphe writing) is the science of producing holograms, an advanced form of photography that allows an image to be recorded in three dimensions. The technique of holography can also be used to optically store and retrieve information. Holograms are common in science-fiction, most notably Star Trek, Star Wars, and Red Dwarf.

Holography in art

Salvador Dalí claims to have been the first to employ holography artistically. He was certainly the first and most notorious Catalan surrealist to do so, but the 1972 New York exhibit of Dalí holograms had been preceded by "the first holographic art exhibition was held at the Cranbrook Academy of Art in Michigan in 1968. The second took place at the Finch College gallery in New York in 1970 and attracted national media attention." (source: http://www.holophile.com/history.htm ). (A vastly entertaining account of a 1973 Dalí holography project (with Alice Cooper as subject) can be found at: http://www.alicecoopertrivia.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/people/p-dali.php)

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An interesting new development is the holography of Yves Gentet. Using a new emulsion, the quality of the holograms has increased dramatically. Examples of it can be seen at http://www.ultimate-holography.com. The artistic possibilities are evident, however the technology is new and still mostly undiscovered by the art world.

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