3D: Double Vision
3D: Double Vision
The quest for perfect 3D representation drives innovation, stimulates creative expression, and sparks wonder in generation after generation. 3D: Double Vision is the first American exhibition to survey a full range of artworks, dating from 1838 to the present, that produce the illusion of three dimensions. These artworks function by activating binocular vision—the process by which our brains synthesize the information received by our two eyes into a single, volumetric image.
The history of 3D begins in the 1830s with the invention of the stereoscope. Initially considered a scientific device, the stereoscope soon entered popular culture, as Victorian audiences became fascinated with stereo photographs depicting faraway lands, colossal monuments, current events, and comic scenes. 3D motion picture technology followed in the 20th century, along with consumer products such as View Masters and Stereo Realist cameras. Lenticular printing and holography generate dimensional effects without the aid of glasses. In the digital present, artists have access to all these technologies for generating virtual images.
Drawn from the realms of art, science, mass culture, and entertainment, the artworks in 3D: Double Vision will dazzle the eyes and provoke the imagination. Ultimately, to experience 3D is to engage with questions about the nature of perception, the allure of illusionism, and our relationship with the technologies that create such images.
This exhibition was organized by the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.
Presented by:
Generous support provided by Yvonne Hessler in memory of Gordon Hessler, D.G.A. Additional support provided by RealD, Stereo D, Christie Digital Systems, and the Wallis Annenberg Director's Endowment Fund.
This exhibition is part of The Hyundai Project: Art + Technology at LACMA, a joint initiative exploring the convergence of art and technology.
All exhibitions at LACMA are underwritten by the LACMA Exhibition Fund. Major annual support is provided by Mr. and Mrs. Anthony and Lee Shaw, Kitzia and Richard Goodman, Jerry and Kathleen Grundhofer, Meredith and David Kaplan, and Jeffrey Saikhon, with generous annual funding from the Judy and Bernard Briskin Family Foundation, Louise and Brad Edgerton, Edgerton Foundation, Emily and Teddy Greenspan, Marilyn B. and Calvin B. Gross, Mary and Daniel James, David Lloyd and Kimberly Steward, Kelsey Lee Offield, David Schwartz Foundation, Inc., Andy Song, Lenore and Richard Wayne, and The Kenneth T. and Eileen L. Norris Foundation.
Image: Louis Jules Duboscq, Untitled stereoscopic pairs, c. 1851, hand-colored lithography, 3 3/4 x 7 in., collection of Erkki Huhtamo, photo © Museum Associates/LACMA
- Jul 15, 2018–Apr 1, 2019
- Art of the Americas Building, Level 2
This exhibition was organized by the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.
Presented by:
Generous support provided by Yvonne Hessler in memory of Gordon Hessler, D.G.A. Additional support provided by RealD, Stereo D, Christie Digital Systems, and the Wallis Annenberg Director's Endowment Fund.
This exhibition is part of The Hyundai Project: Art + Technology at LACMA, a joint initiative exploring the convergence of art and technology.
All exhibitions at LACMA are underwritten by the LACMA Exhibition Fund. Major annual support is provided by Mr. and Mrs. Anthony and Lee Shaw, Kitzia and Richard Goodman, Jerry and Kathleen Grundhofer, Meredith and David Kaplan, and Jeffrey Saikhon, with generous annual funding from the Judy and Bernard Briskin Family Foundation, Louise and Brad Edgerton, Edgerton Foundation, Emily and Teddy Greenspan, Marilyn B. and Calvin B. Gross, Mary and Daniel James, David Lloyd and Kimberly Steward, Kelsey Lee Offield, David Schwartz Foundation, Inc., Andy Song, Lenore and Richard Wayne, and The Kenneth T. and Eileen L. Norris Foundation.
Image: Louis Jules Duboscq, Untitled stereoscopic pairs, c. 1851, hand-colored lithography, 3 3/4 x 7 in., collection of Erkki Huhtamo, photo © Museum Associates/LACMA
Media
Krysten Cunningham
United States, b. 1973
Hypercube, 2006
Single-channel SD video, sound; duration 8:32 min.
Los Angeles County Museum of Art, purchased with funds provided by LENS: Photography Council, 2018, M.2018.87
Krysten Cunningham’s visual source material, which she discovered through the UCLA physics department, is a 1978 computer animation by Thomas F. Banchoff and Charles Strauss. Her narration incorporates additional commentary on the fourth dimension by esoteric philosopher P.D. Ouspensky and cyberpunk author Rudy Rucker; her harmonica soundtrack adds a meditative aura.
