SHEARWATER FOUNDATION ANNOUNCES HOLOGRAPHY GRANTS FOR 2001

 FT. Lauderdale, Florida, December 31st 2001 - - The Shearwater Foundation announced today that its Board of Directors has awarded $104,500.00 in grants through its Holography Program this year. The Shearwater Foundation provides funding to groups, institutions and associations that contribute to the understanding and appreciation of art holography world-wide. It also awards an Holography Award to artists who are exemplary in the field.

The Center for the Holographic Arts, Long Island City, USA, received a maintaining grant of $50,000.00 towards the running and developmental costs of its Artist-in-Residence program. The residencies were established by the Center in 1998 to provide creative and technical facilities for artists wishing to develop their work with holography. The Center, under the guidance of founding Directors Ana Maria Nicholson and Dan Schweitzer, has become a focus of excellence, attracting new and established artists from around the world.

Everyone involved with The Shearwater Foundation would like to express their deep sadness at the death, on December 5th, of Dan Schweitzer. He was a driving force in creative holography and was able, through his leadership of the Center and through his own work, to pass on his skills and sensitivity so that other artists could share his excitement for the medium he so enthusiastically developed. Days before his death he was planning, with the Center's board of directors, how the activities of the Center might continue and improve. Ana Maria Nicholson will continue as director and, with the help of all those who have supported the Center, continue to teach and encourage artists.

Stephanie Hunt, Boston, USA, received a grant of $9,500.00, to research and develop "Eye on Holography", an interactive online resource for students, teachers and the general public. Her aim is to provide material which will allow visitors to understand the basic ideas upon which holographic imaging is founded. This grant will allow her to expand her research and technical development and include greater detail about the creative aspects of the medium and the artists who are working with it. The project, begun during her studies in the Technology in Education program at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, will be developed with the MIT Museum, its holography collection and resources.

The Nederlandse Stichting voor Waarneming + Holografie, Holland, received $1,000.00, the second payment of a two-year grant towards the production of "Optische Fenomenen". This internationally distributed publication, founded, produced and edited by Jan Broeders covers aspects of visual perception and three-dimensional imaging. The funding was provided to assist with the inclusion of more information about creative holography and to increase the publication's international distribution.

The Holography Purchase Project, established last year, was made into a permanent part of the Foundation's grant giving during 2001. The Butler Institute of American Art, Youngstown, USA, received a grant of $4,000.00 towards the purchase of "Lucy in a Tin Hat" a dichromate version of the hologram by British artist Patrick Boyd. This will now become archived as part of the Institute's permanent collection.

The Shearwater Foundation Holography Award was given to four artists in recognition of their outstanding activities in the field of creative holography. They have demonstrated a clear understanding of the aesthetic and technical qualities of the medium and developed an individual body of work which extends beyond the optical and physical qualities of the holographic process. As in previous years, they were nominated by an international group of advisors (which is newly appointed each year the award is made) and receive a personal award of $10,000.00. The artists were:

Marie-Christiane Mathieu, Canada
Matthew Schreiber, USA
Harriet Casdin-Silver, USA
Rudie Berkhout, USA/Netherlands.