I have been reading quite a lot about holograms lately. I intend to make a few holograms using a very straightforward method to see if it’s something I want to pursue with more gusto. Other than my near-primordial fascination with the prospect of playing with shiny beams of pure light, the holographic image interests me because it expands on the optical clarity of the daguerreotype. Daguerreotypes, as many of you know, have an ultra-fine resolution that can’t be rivaled by digital or film technology. Holograms are higher in resolution but offer another dimension due to a radically different recording method.
When finished, a holographic plate displays to the viewer an image that is the exact size of the subject. This aspect of holography is so real that highly accurate scientific measurements can be made from holographic images of objects. The limitation, my dear reader, is that the hologram cannot be enlarged - a property shared with my favorite 19th century cousin.
Often I tell collectors, gallery owners and media that one of my reasons for working with the daguerreotype is that I wanted to get the photograph “off the wall.” The daguerreotype invites close inspection and, like sculpture, it can be viewed from all angles, held, touched, and enjoyed on many sensory levels whereas a flat photograph cannot. That’s why the following quote from Laser Reflections (attributed to Ron and Bernadette Olson) is so poignant:
At a time when our visual senses are being assaulted on a grand scale by gigantic billboards and megavision screens – there is something both charming and ingratiating about an image that must be approached to be appreciated.
How true.
-Jonathan
