‘PANORAMAS OF THE MOVING IMAGE’ AT MUSEUM OF MODERN ART

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NEW YORK CITY — The Museum of Modern Art is presenting “Panoramas of the Moving Image: Mechanical Slides and Dissolving Views from Nineteenth Century Magic Lantern Shows” in the Titus Theater 1 and 2 Lobby Galleries through February 25.

Painted or printed images on glass were among the earliest forms of projected “motion picture” entertainment. Mechanical glass slides were manipulated to simulate various kinds of change in the image, and multiple projectors allowed for superimposed and dissolving views.

Brightly colored, handcrafted slides, depicting human activity, fantasy figures and landscapes, were typically presented with live narration, music and sound effects, in what became popular by the 1870s as Magic Lantern shows.

Experimental media artist Ernie Gehr’s “Panoramas of the Moving Image,” 2005, is a synchronized five-channel video installation that uses 87 original slides and views selected from Gehr’s personal collection and that of renowned precinema collector David Francis. Projected side by side, the slides create a widescreen spectacle. A selection of vintage paper Zoetrope strips and Phenakistoscope discs — complementary artifacts of Nineteenth Century moving-image technology — is also on display.

The Museum of Modern Art is at 11 West 53rd Street. For information, www.moma.org or 212-708-9400.