Some Thoughts on Gyorgy Kepes
Description
Hungarian artist Gyorgy Kepes dedicated his life to integrating art and science. He became a member of the M.I.T. faculty in 1946. In 1967, he established the Center for Advanced Visual Studies within the School of Architecture to facilitate the integration of new technology as an artistic medium, foster collaboration among artists, scientists, engineers, and industry, enhance work on an urban scale, create media for various sensory modes of perception, and draw inspiration from nature. The legacy of Gyorgy Kepes as a pivotal figure in the integration of art and science is evident through his transformative contributions at M.I.T. and beyond. Kepes relied heavily on his hands as the instruments of his craft, whether depicted grasping a set of lamps, posing with lighting apparatus and assembled tripods, using a mortar and pestle, or creating a photogram featuring a faint hand silhouette amidst various linear patterns, accompanied by a strategically positioned, diminutive red dot. In numerous photographs and photograms, Kepes employed the symbolism of his hands. Kepes created his earliest photograms in Budapest, drawing inspiration from nature and directly capturing the process on photosensitized surfaces without a camera. During the late 1920s, Kepes joined Moholy-Nagy's studio in Berlin. Throughout his time at the Bauhaus School in Germany, Moholy-Nagy introduced groundbreaking materials and methods. Kepes, alongside Moholy-Nagy, presented the 'new vision' of modern art. In his darkroom, he meticulously created photograms by strategically positioning objects directly on light-sensitive paper and exposing them to light. By employing a painted glass plate as a negative, he produced 'photo-drawings.' Kepes underwent multiple relocations throughout the 1930s and World War II, leaving only a limited number of his works preserved. Photograms, which are light imprints of natural entities, serve as abstract representations linked to Kepes's later interest in scientific documentation. Kepes saw the photogram as a new medium and was deeply committed to its development. He may have even seen it as an improvement over photography because it gave him greater control over light. Visit: https://cambridgecreationlab.com/blog/some-thoughts-on-gyorgy-kepes/ #MIT #VisualTransformations #ModernArt #Photograms #Automatism #gyorgykepes #cognitiveprocess #cambridgecreationlab