- Tide Pool
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In the 19th century, the invention of the halftone screen
allowed printers to easily reproduce photographs by translating shades of gray
into a pattern of black dots that varied in size according to the depth of
tone. A close look at photographs in the newspaper shows the same process at
work today. In “Tide Pool,” Robert
Covington digitally applies a particularly rough version of that antiquated
analog mode of reproduction to a moving image, even endowing each dot with the
slight illusion of three dimensions. Although the artist’s subject—taken at the famed photographic location of Point Lobos—would be difficult to
grasp in a single frame, when viewed in motion with a subtle hint of sound, the graphic abstraction easily translates into an image of reality, thanks to the
mind’s irrepressible urge to find order in chaos.
ProvenanceThe artist, East Hampton, New York; purchased by MFAH, 2016.
Exhibition History"Digital Worlds: New Media from the Museum’s Collection," Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, June 23–October 8, 2018.
Inscriptions, Signatures and Marks
Recto of disc: Inscribed in ink: 1/12 RLC
Verso of case: Printed in ink: Tide Pool - HT 12.5 / Robert L. Covington / CD Contents / TidePool12.5.mp4 Video file - 3 minutes 15 seconds / Descriptor.pdf Contents description and viewing instructions / © Robert L. Covington All rights reserved
Verso of case: Inscribed in graphite: 1/12 Robert L. Covington [cursive]
Cataloguing data may change with further research.
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