IMAGINATION SERIES

ARTISTIC INTERPRETATION | HOLOGRAM

This project explores Britain’s legacy of innovation through a series of artistically interpreted patents, developed as part of the UK Foreign Office’s Great for Imagination campaign. Developed in close collaboration with photographer Ted Humble Smith and the intellectual property office throughout 2017, the work involved researching historic inventions and reimagining them as meticulously crafted visual narratives.

This piece focuses on the invention of the hologram, patented in the UK in 1947 by Budapest-born physicist Dennis Gabor. His pioneering technique enabled the recording and reconstruction of three-dimensional light patterns, laying the foundations for holography decades before the technology required to fully realise it existed. While the first complete hologram was not produced until the invention of the laser in 1964, Gabor’s discovery now permeates everyday life, from security features on bank cards to advanced imaging systems.

Our interpretation sought to translate the intangible qualities of holography into a physical, in-camera image. Through the careful construction of sculptural elements, experimental lighting, and reflective surfaces, the work captures an ethereal interplay of light and form, echoing the perceptual complexity of Gabor’s original vision. The resulting image resists digital simulation, instead foregrounding material experimentation and optical illusion as central to the process.

The series formed part of a global exhibition programme beginning at the Institute of Contemporary Art in London, celebrating the intersection of scientific inquiry and creative imagination, and was later featured on BBC One’s The One Show.