Holograms : a cultural history / Sean F. Johnston.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Johnston, Sean, 1956- author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Holography--History.

Holography.

History.

Genre:

History.

Physical Description:

xi, 257 pages : illustrations ; 25 cm

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

Oxford : Oxford University Press, 2016.

Contents:

1 Introduction 1

1.1 Culture and technology 2

1.2 Why cultural history? 4

1.3 Audiences and assessments 7

Part A Visual Culture and Modernity: The Backstory to Holograms

2 Scientific Imagery and Visual Novelty 11

2.1 Modern alchemy 11

2.2 Scientific imaging for enthusiasts and professionals 13

2.3 The stereoscope: scientific magic at home 17

2.4 Halting science: the case of the Lippmann photograph 22

3 Grassroots Modernity 27

3.1 Reproduction for the millions 27

3.2 Imagery to exhilarate 28

3.3 Imagery to educate 33

3.4 Imagery to emulate 37

3.5 Imagery to entertain 41

3.6 Displaying progress 44

Part B Making Sense of Holograms

4 Hologram Secrets 53

4.1 Starting small: microscopic culture 54

4.2 Trusting holograms 57

4.3 Making imagery electronic 60

4.4 From radar to holograms 64

5 Holograms as Magic 69

5.1 Modern illusions 70

5.2 Portraying perplexity 74

5.3 Distilling the essence of holograms 77

6 Holograms and Progress 83

6.1 Representing modernity 83

6.2 Expressing national status 85

6.3 Anticipating consumer wonders 87

6.4 Engineering the nature 91

Part C Hologram Cultures

7 Holograms for Enthusiasts 99

7.1 Hobbyists, tinkerers and technical enthusiasts 100

7.2 Growing amateur scientists 101

7.3 Holograms for amateurs 109

8 Hologram Communities 119

8.1 Countercultural expressions 121

8.2 Meditating on holograms 125

8.3 Making holograms move 128

8.4 Holograms at school 132

8.5 Enthusiasts' networks 136

9 Holograms on Display 140

9.1 Exhibiting holograms 140

9.2 Holograms as art 146

9.3 Holograms and heritage 153

9.4 Holograms and the postmodern 158

9.5 Collecting holograms 162

10 Consuming Holograms 165

10.1 Fitting holograms to culture 169

10.2 Canning the uncanny 177

10.3 Symbols of security 186

10.4 The digital transition 188

11 Channelling Dreams 191

11.1 Galaxies and holograms far, far away 192

11.2 Spectacle, aesthetics or ubiquity? 202

11.3 Popular and unpopular cultures 207

11.4 Magic, metaphors and materialism 209.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 225-246) and index.

ISBN:

9780198712763

0198712766

OCLC:

933280643