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Coburn, Alvin Langdon: vortograph of Ezra Pound
Ezra Pound, vortograph by Alvin Langdon Coburn.
Vortograph
photography
Vortograph, the first completely abstract kind of photograph, composed of kaleidoscopic repetitions of forms achieved by photographing objects through a triangular arrangement of three mirrors. Alvin Langdon Coburn, a member of the Photo-Secession group and a pioneer in nonobjective photography, invented vortography in 1917 and remained the principal advocate and practitioner of the technique. Coburn’s experiments with the technique lasted only a short while.
The name is a reference to the Vorticist group of British writers and painters. The fractured planes and complex space characteristic of vortography reflect the Vorticists’ as well as Coburn’s own interest in Cubism.
The Editors of Encyclopaedia BritannicaThis article was most recently revised and updated by Amy Tikkanen.
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