Creative Partnerships - Holography and Photography 'Identity' Workshops

During November and December we took part in a Creative Partnerships 'Identity' Project with 60 Sholing Technology College Year 8 Students and artist Garry Kennard of the Art and Mind organisation.

During this Creative Partnerships project students made holograms of objects that are precious – or unique to them - to explore issues of identity creatively. Students learnt about Biometrics and used drawings of their own fingerprints as creative starting points to produce photograms. Students also explored the science behind the photographic and holographic light-based media to learn what made their artwork possible – doing hands-on activities with lasers and optics.

Some of the students’ feedback included:-

Class 8MT

‘I really enjoyed making the holograms and seeing the end product…I have something that represents me’.

‘It helped me think about what to do in the future’. P.S. IT WAS AMAZING!’

Class 8MR
‘I have never made holograms before. It’s the best science lesson’.

‘I wouldn’t normally do this but I thought it was awesome!’

‘We’ve all worked hard…but we haven’t been made to work hard’.

We all worked together and helped each other, so we made…perfect holograms’.

An exhibition of drumming, photograms, holograms, poetry and totempoles that the students made will be on show for the whole school and friends and parents of the students in March.

Reigate Hill Rotary Holography

I was invited to give a holography demonstration -along with a talk on Photonics- to members of the Rotary Club of Reigate Hill on October 10, 2007. Approximately 20 members of the club listened politely to my talk and watched a hologram being made in the Restaurant at the Reigate Manor Hotel.

I'm pictured here explaining how laser light hits the holographic plate - from above and below - in order to produce the holographic image on the plate (at least that's what I think I was saying!).

It's amazing that you can now make a hologram on a restaurant table infront of a room full of people - thanks to some cutting-edge technology. My holography rig was supplied by Mike Anderson [contact me if you'd like his address] with holography plates and chemistry purchased from Integraf. The equipment and holography materials allow a 12 second exposure of an object with a laser safe to use in public and a 10 second developing time.

The President of the Club Maggie Jackson made the hologram infront of the hushed audience, and my Father Michael John, (member of Reigate Rotary Club) is shown here drying the hologram with a hair-drier.

Pip Ward - a member of the Rotary Club - views a display hologram after the demonstration.

I was very grateful to learn that the members distributed schools' information packs to their local schools as a result of attending the talk which encouraged everyone to support their children and grandchildren (particularly girls) to take part in science at school and at home.

Thanks to Maggie Jackson for the invite - and to Michael Jones for the photographs.