The Museum of Jurassic Technology
Art-72
(5-01-15)
Abstract
The following is an
introduction to the world of Albert G. Richards, a renowned photographer;
inventor, dental educator, and artist. This brief editorial will cover Mr.
Richards’ contributions to artistry, photography, dentistry and its X-ray
technologies, i.e., the recessed cone dental x-ray machine. I have critiqued
the exhibit presenting the radiographic art-works of Mr. Richards, which I observed
at the Jurassic Museum of Technology on 1 May 2015.
“Radiographic Floral Exhibit”
By Albert G. Richards
Albert G. Richards
My decision in choosing the Museum
of Jurassic Technology could not have been a better one in fulfilling my field
trip assignment for Art 72 as I was pleasantly surprised to find the facility a
visually delightful grouping of mazelike rooms and their exhibits. With poor
eyesight it was perhaps, a little too dimly lighted. I had little knowledge of
these art variations and their various mediums. One of the exhibits that I had
an immediate attraction with, were the works of Albert G. Richards, who was
instrumental in the pioneering of x-ray photography; more specifically, the
recessed cone dental x-ray machine, which he used, in
part, to create his floral radiographs.
For a bit f trivia, Professor Richards was the first non-dentist
president of the American Academy of Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology. Mr. Richards
is perhaps most famous for these floral radiographs, several of which hang in
museums across the country. He has published a book with over 100 of his famed
radiographs. One of his works was featured on the cover of the Smithsonian. Mr.
Richards is still living at the ripe old age of 96!
The Floral Radiographs of Albert G. Richards
Description:
Mr. Richards’ radiographic floral
art works appeared to radiate an inner light at their respective cores, which I
found to be most unique, in that, I had never seen such a medium brought to
fruition, with possibly the lone exclusion of one of the noble gases; to wit: neon1
which radiates light via the electrical excitement of various atoms,
i.e., Las Vegas’ night lights. Mr. Richards, using X-rays negatives from his
invention, the recessed cone dental x-ray machine2 in conjunction
with photography to create his art, which is eerily akin to amebic-like- life-forms.
Insomuch, as most of his flowers were done individually (a few exceptions; but,
not many) and not in unison, i.e., as exhibited in the four photographs above. His
construction methods for his art endeavors were; in deed, most original. Albert’s exposure (pun intended) at a very young age to
photography though his father’s
expertise, who was an accomplished photographer, ultimately enabled him
to make further advances in various processes in the fields of dentistry, art and
photography. Mr. Richards’ first published his floral radiographs in 1962 in
the National Geographic Society's School Bulletin.
His works were very
self-explanatory regarding nature’s world of flora and somewhat soothing to the
eye. They had a tranquil affect on me; both physically and mentally! The
texture of all of the works that I observed had a more or less sort of ‘black-light’
demeanor to them, in that, their appearances was somewhat fuzzy and hazy, as
well as distant. In regards to the colorations utilized by Mr. Richards, he
reduced them to either a light blue or white hue (the ones that I viewed) with
a glow-like-effect radiating from within, surreal; but, nevertheless, a most pleasant
sight.
In regards to the lighting,
which was the single most important ingredient in his ability to present this
usual approach into creating radiographic art and I would venture to take it
one step further and say that without its use (light) he would not have had a
medium in machine, which he used, in
part, to create his floral radiographs.
For a bit f trivia, Professor Richards was the first non-dentist
president of the American Academy of Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology. Mr. Richards
is perhaps most famous for these floral radiographs, several of which hang in
museums across the country. He has published a book with over 100 of his famed
radiographs. One of his works was featured on the cover of the Smithsonian. Mr.
Richards is still living at the ripe old age of 96!
which to have created his art,
i.e., photons/x-rays giving him the necessary tools needed. His art has both
qualities of negative and positive spaces. With the latter used to visually bring
his x-rays to life through photography. I am not sure exactly how he employed
this technique incorporating the x-rays negatives into his finished works. I
researched what information that was available on the Internet;however, I
could not find the definitive procedure that Mr. Richards utilized.
Evaluation
Regarding my thoughts before
and after Mr. Richards’ exhibit, they were basically unchanged as I like them
from the very beginning; in fact, I went through the exhibit twice. I
personally thought that Mr. Richards more than conveyed his purpose in
presenting his floral display in a most unique and usual way, i.e., X-rays. Mr.
Richards took his thoughts and combined them with science & technology to
facilitate an unusual art form. And in finality, I can honestly say that I have
not spent a more enjoyable afternoon in a very long time. Thank you for the
introduction, or rather the suggestion to the Jurassic Museum of Technology. In
the future I am sure that I will return and takes someone who has never had the
pleasure.
I have presented to the best
of my abilities, a limited critique of Mr. Richards’ art, i.e., the
radiographic floral display. I am finding that with the passage of time I am
getting more comfortable in my attempts to critique/describe what I am seeing,
regarding most art objects in the various mediums that I have observed while
taking this course.
End notes:
1 1. Neon is a chemical element with symbol Ne and atomic
number 10. It is in group 18 (noble gases) of the periodic table. Neon is a
colorless, odorless monatomic gas under standard conditions, with about
two-thirds the density of air. It was discovered (along with krypton and xenon)
in 1898 as one of the three residual rare inert elements remaining in dry air,
after nitrogen, oxygen, argon and carbon dioxide are removed. Neon was the
second of these three rare gases to be discovered, and was immediately
recognized as a new element from its bright red emission spectrum. The name
neon is derived from the Greek word νέον, neuter singular form of νέος [neos],
meaning new.
2. Recessed Cone X-ray: Cone beam reconstruction uses a
2-dimensional approach for obtaining projection data. Instead of utilizing a
single row of detectors, as fan beam methods do, a cone beam systems uses a
standard charge-coupled device camera, focused on a scintillator material. The
scintillator converts X-ray radiation to visible light, which is picked up by
the camera and recorded. The method has enjoyed widespread implementation in
microtomography, and is also used in several larger-scale systems. An X-ray
source is positioned across from the detector,
with the object being scanned in between. (This is essentially the same setup
used for an ordinary X-ray fluoroscope).
