Since opening Gallery 286 in 1998, I have tried to have at least one exhibition of holograms a year. This has comprised solo shows, two-handers and group shows (20 so far), and exhibitions drawn from my personal collection of which the latest show is the 18th. This year I am focussing on holograms of objects.

The Polaroid/MIT scientist Stephen Benton famously described the subject matter of many early holograms as “small dead things”.

To make holograms of living subjects, humans, animals, plants etc. that are moving in a subtle way even when they appear to be still, you either need access to an expensive pulse laser that emits brief intense bursts of light which will effectively freeze a subject, or to record a holographic stereogram – a hybrid of photography and holography - whereby a photographic sequence is converted into a synthetic hologram, often incorporating animation. Pulse lasers are few and far between and stereograms require an elaborate system, so many holographers use low power continuous wave lasers which require relatively long exposure times to make their recordings. Consequently they choose subjects which are not going to move, and set up their optics on vibration isolation tables, which can weigh several tons.

All these factors determine the choice of objects which, as holographers usually want as bright an image as possible, tend to be ones that will reflect the light well, such as metal, glass, ceramics etc. Also, if it is a monochrome recording, ones where the final image being green, red or golden orange, does not detract unduly. Achromatic holograms, where the image most resembles a black and white photograph, can be effective, but are less widely made. A broadband recording in dichromate gelatin achieves a similar result.

Skilled holographers like John Kaufman, Inaki Beguiristain and Mike Medora have used emulsion swelling techniques whereby a multicolour image can be achieved in reflection holography with a single coloured laser, using the chemical triethanolamine to alter the thickness of the emulsion between exposures. This technique is sometimes referred to as ‘pseudocolour’. In rainbow holography a similar effect can be obtained by the juxtaposition of exposures made using different reference angles, but in that case the colours are not stable, shifting through the spectrum as you change your viewing position.

As total fidelity of recording is the goal for many holographers, especially those from the scientific community, a full colour or ‘true colour’ hologram is the ultimate aim and, to achieve this, red, green and blue lasers need to combine on a panchromatic emulsion.

The Swedish scientist Hans Bjelkhagen and the French scientist Yves Gentet have both recorded impressive true colour holograms and the British holographer Mike Medora’s company Colour Holographic has produced totally convincing holographic facsimiles.

Medora and Gentet have both manufactured their own emulsions to that end.

One of their intentions was to make reproductions of museum objects that could be displayed by museums while the original was out on loan and all the above mentioned holographers’ work was certainly adequate for that purpose but, to my knowledge only the Hellenic Institute of Holography, another leader in true colour holography, has persuaded a museum to accept their ‘Optoclones’ TM .

In Russia there was a long established tradition of using holography to “take art to the people” and as early as the 1970s holographic reproductions of art objects went on tour around the country in specially equipped trains.

Some artists have been drawn to holography initially as a means of recording their work in other mediums. The Venezuelan glass artist Ruben Nunez was one such, who eventually came to regard holography as his primary medium. The light artist James Turrell, primarily known for large scale installations, has used holography extensively to create smaller, editioned work, which can be sold to collectors to fund his other projects.

When I first encountered art holography, holograms that simply recorded an artefact seemed less creative than more multilayered or abstract imagery, but I have come to appreciate the advantages of playing to the medium’s strength in recording texture and volume and with presenting the viewer with the perfect illusion of an object being right there behind the glass when your mind is telling you that it cannot really be.

For this exhibition I have selected holograms from my collection that present their subject matter in a fairly straightforward way but are made interesting by the combination of technical excellence with a choice of objects which are either works of art in themselves or visually intriguing one way or another.

For a first time viewer the very fact that something is a hologram can be exciting enough, hence the preponderance of chess pieces and model trains in early scientific holograms where the holographer has chosen to record whatever came easily to hand, but for a hologram to have an enduring appeal, or to become a work of art, requires it to have sufficient beauty or sophistication of concept to outlive the ‘wow’ factor.

I have been looking at some of these holograms for over 40 years and still find them captivating. I hope you will enjoy the experience too.

Jonathan Ross
February 2026

List of works

Icon of Jesus Christ the Saviour, 1980s/2004
40x28cm reflection hologram
by Russian Holographic Studios

Nova, 1989.
10x8” pseudocolour reflection hologram
by Mike Medora

Henry Moore – Mother & Child, 1982
8”x10” reflection hologram
by Ken Harris

Secret/Sacred III, 1979/2000
10”x8” reflection hologram with mixed media
by Margaret Benyon

Glass Bowl. 2004
8”x10” 2-colour reflection hologram
by Inaki Beguiristain

Ebb and Flow, 1980s
10”x8” reflection hologram
by Dominic Welby

Oak Cubed, 1983
4”x5” reflection hologram with mixed media
by Martin Richardson

Vacuum Hose, 1980
4”x 5” reflection hologram
by John Kaufman

Toolworks, 1992
30cm x 40cm reflection hologram
by John Kaufman

Ganesh, 1990s
12”x7.5” dichromate gelatin reflection hologram
by August Muth

Homage to Louis Comfort Tiffany, 1978
8”x10” white light transmission hologram
by Ruben Nunez

Nepalese Reflection, 1986
2 9”x8” reflection holograms (back to back)
by Caroline Palmer

Rind II, 1978
12”x12” white light transmission hologram
by Steve Benton

Butterflies, 2008
43x 32cm true colour reflection hologram
by Yves Gentet

Russian Egg, 1994
5”x4” true colour reflection hologram
By Hans Bjelkhagen

Strawberry Jug, 2010
40x30cm true colour reflection hologram
by Colour Holographic