John Rosenbaum
Encyclopedia
John Rosenbaum was an American educator
and kinetic sculptor
, associated with the San Francisco Renaissance
and the counterculture of the 1960s
.
with a degree in engineering physics
in 1957. He moved to the San Francisco Bay Area
in the early 1960s. He contributed to the Harvard Project Physics
textbooks. He was associated with the experimental education
movement in the 1960s, and was a colleague of the educator Herbert Kohl, who described Rosenbaum's educational work in his books The Open Classroom and Math, Writing & Games in the Open Classroom. Rosenbaum created "Light Boxes", kinetic sculptures
using polarized light and layers of cellophane
placed between rotating glass disks, producing changing patterns and colors similar to, and on a smaller scale than, light shows
projected at rock concerts in the 1960s. He was exhibited by the Landau Gallery
in Beverly Hills
, among others. He was a colleague of silk screen artist Arthur Okamura
. He died of complications from Parkinson's disease
in 2003.
and kinetic sculptor
Kinetic art
Kinetic art is art that contains moving parts or depends on motion for its effect. The moving parts are generally powered by wind, a motor or the observer. Kinetic art encompasses a wide variety of overlapping techniques and styles.-Kinetic sculpture:...
, associated with the San Francisco Renaissance
San Francisco Renaissance
The term San Francisco Renaissance is used as a global designation for a range of poetic activity centered on San Francisco and which brought it to prominence as a hub of the American poetic avant-garde. However, others The term San Francisco Renaissance is used as a global designation for a range...
and the counterculture of the 1960s
Counterculture of the 1960s
The counterculture of the 1960s refers to a cultural movement that mainly developed in the United States and spread throughout much of the western world between 1960 and 1973. The movement gained momentum during the U.S. government's extensive military intervention in Vietnam...
.
Biography
John Rosenbaum graduated from Cornell UniversityCornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
with a degree in engineering physics
Engineering physics
Engineering physics is the study of the combined disciplines of physics, engineering and mathematics in order to develop an understanding of the interrelationships of these three disciplines. Fundamental physics is combined with problem solving and engineering skills, which then has broad...
in 1957. He moved to the San Francisco Bay Area
San Francisco Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a populated region that surrounds the San Francisco and San Pablo estuaries in Northern California. The region encompasses metropolitan areas of San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, along with smaller urban and rural areas...
in the early 1960s. He contributed to the Harvard Project Physics
Harvard Project Physics
Harvard Project Physics was a national curriculum development project to create a secondary school physics education program in the United States. The project was active from 1962 to 1972, and produced the Project Physics series of texts, which were used in physics classrooms in the 1970s and 1980s...
textbooks. He was associated with the experimental education
Unschooling
Unschooling is a range of educational philosophies and practices centered on allowing children to learn through their natural life experiences, including play, game play, household responsibilities, work experience, and social interaction, rather than through a more traditional school curriculum....
movement in the 1960s, and was a colleague of the educator Herbert Kohl, who described Rosenbaum's educational work in his books The Open Classroom and Math, Writing & Games in the Open Classroom. Rosenbaum created "Light Boxes", kinetic sculptures
Lumino Kinetic Art
Lumino Kinetic art involves, as the name suggests, light and movement. It is a subset and an art historical term in the context of the more established kinetic art, which in turn is a subset of new media art...
using polarized light and layers of cellophane
Cellophane
Cellophane is a thin, transparent sheet made of regenerated cellulose. Its low permeability to air, oils, greases, bacteria and water makes it useful for food packaging...
placed between rotating glass disks, producing changing patterns and colors similar to, and on a smaller scale than, light shows
Liquid light shows
Liquid light shows or psychedelic light shows surfaced in the mid 1960s and early 1970s in America and Europe.Leading names were Glen McKay’s Headlights The Joshua Light Show/Joe's Lights/Sensefex located in NY), Tony Martin Liquid light shows or psychedelic light shows surfaced in the mid 1960s...
projected at rock concerts in the 1960s. He was exhibited by the Landau Gallery
Felix Landau (art)
Felix Henry Landau was an American art dealer, whose Los Angeles gallery was a showcase for modern and contemporary art in the 1960s....
in Beverly Hills
La Cienega Boulevard
La Cienega Boulevard is a major, well-known north–south arterial road that runs between El Segundo Boulevard in El Segundo, California on the south and the Sunset Strip/Sunset Boulevard in West Hollywood....
, among others. He was a colleague of silk screen artist Arthur Okamura
Arthur Okamura
Arthur Okamura was an American artist, working in screen printing, drawing and painting. He lived in the San Francisco Bay Area, and was Professor Emeritus at the California College of the Arts in San Francisco, California...
. He died of complications from Parkinson's disease
Parkinson's disease
Parkinson's disease is a degenerative disorder of the central nervous system...
in 2003.
Exhibitions
- 1969 Felix Landau GalleryFelix Landau (art)Felix Henry Landau was an American art dealer, whose Los Angeles gallery was a showcase for modern and contemporary art in the 1960s....
, Los Angeles - 1975 Walnut Creek, CaliforniaWalnut Creek, CaliforniaWalnut Creek is an incorporated city located east of the city of Oakland. It lies in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. While not as large as neighboring Concord, Walnut Creek serves as the business and entertainment hub for the neighboring cities within central Contra Costa...
(with Arthur Okamura)
See also
- PhotoelasticityPhotoelasticityPhotoelasticity is an experimental method to determine the stress distribution in a material. The method is mostly used in cases where mathematical methods become quite cumbersome. Unlike the analytical methods of stress determination, photoelasticity gives a fairly accurate picture of stress...
, related to the birefringentBirefringenceBirefringence, or double refraction, is the decomposition of a ray of light into two rays when it passes through certain anisotropic materials, such as crystals of calcite or boron nitride. The effect was first described by the Danish scientist Rasmus Bartholin in 1669, who saw it in calcite...
properties of cellophane, as used in Rosenbaum's kinetic sculptures
External links
- Examples of the optical effects used in "Light Boxes":
- sugar syrup solution placed between 2 linear polarizers, producing 3 primary colors
- multiple examples of color produced from polarized light and clear plastics