One of a Kind IE: World's Largest Photograph

Hi neighbors!

So I may be cheating a little bit on this blog post but bear with me. Last Saturday I attended the Riverside Food Truck Fest (check out the pix!) and I got the chance to check out some of the spots from my Riverside itinerary. One new spot I've never been to is the California Museum of Photography and the UCR Sweeney Art Gallery.

The Sweeney Art Gallery's current exhibit is "The Great Picture." This mammoth 32 x 111 feet photograph taken by the largest camera made its way into photo history by placing in the Guinness World Records. This photograph has only been shown for a short period in Pasadena and again in China. However, right here in our area, it is the first time that the process for creating this photo is being displayed along with it. It's an interesting exhibit not only because of its size but the documentation of this entire process.

The development of "The Great Picture" was conducted in an old jet hangar on the old El Toro Air Base in Irvine. This no longer functioning air base spans numerous acres and is being turned into the center point for the Orange County Great Park. One of the functions of this Great Park is to be a cultural focal point for the people of Orange County. "The Great Picture" is the first cultural endeavor made by the upcoming park. My description does not do the exhibit justice and you can find out more here. Or even better - take a trip down there! The exhibit ends October 8th.

So did I cheat? It's not specifically something from the IE but this very unique exhibit is here in our IE for us to share. I'll stretch that into the "One of a kind IE" list. :)

Here's some pix from the day. Let us know what you think or if you've seen the exhibit we'd love to hear about your experience. Give us a shout on Twitter or Facebook ~ we'd love to hear from you!

*"The Great Picture"

*Far left is a remnant from the hundreds of quonset huts from the El Toro Air Base. Far right image is a close up of a part of "The Great Picture." You can slightly make out a cityscape. Neat!

*Look at this amazing camera. If you look closely at the glass pane of the camera in the top right hand photo you'll see that it's taking a picture of the outside ~ it's just upside down. That Camera Obscura door led out to a large walk-in camera obscura - complete with pinhole and everything. Super neat!