Untitled Choreogramme Photograph

Name: Ragnar Digital, LLC
Price range: $

Otto Beckmann

1966

Description

Throughout his career, beginning in the mid-1930s, Otto Beckmann experimented with many mediums and styles. But he is most widely recognized for his pioneering work in the field of computer art. This untitled print marks a key transitional moment in his practice, as he moved from photography into new media.

The work was made in 1966, the same year that Beckmann founded Ars Intermedia, an influential group dedicated to exploring the artistic possibilities of computer technology. The photograph is representative of Beckmann’s work leading up to this event. In the late 1950s, he embarked on a series of photographic studies using transparent Plexiglass sculptures lit with UV and polarized light. The sculptures were then moved according to a pre-planned choreography — hence the arrows in this image. In the final stage, Beckmann stitched the individual shots together to create films.

After the establishment of Ars Intermedia, Beckmann’s use of photography shifted: it became a way to record computer-generated images.

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