The Beaumier Heritage Center has taken advantage of 3-D technology to give us a unique way of viewing the Upper Peninsula. Titled “U.P. in 3-D,” this exhibit is made entirely out of three dimensional photographs taken in the U.P. from the late 19th and early 20th centuries, many of them by the photographer B.F. Childs.
The “U.P. in 3-D” exhibit features photographs of an era when our Yooper identity was still in formation. The photographs showcase many different scenes of life from dirty miners, to well-dressed Native Americans, and scenery unmarked by modern buildings and technology.
“Back then, photography was very different. Not everybody had a camera and for many people, getting their picture taken was a very big deal. It was a special thing and they wanted to show themselves at their best” Truckey said. “(The photographs) do show things about the 19th century but they’re staged as well.”
Even in that era, people were already experimenting with 3-D images, which was very practical when creating this display.
“They’ve been taking (3-D photographs) for a long time,” Truckey said. “There were a lot of photographers in the late 19th and early 20th century who were going around the country to places and taking a lot of photographs of things in 3-D. They were very popular for people because this was before television and before early cinema took off, so this was a way for people to see things.”
Even though they didn’t have the Real3D technology that we do today, they could take two images of the same subject but from different angles and view those through a stereopticon that allowed their brain to layer the images causing 3-D effects. These images were found in many homes of that era.
The Beaumier Heritage Center took those images and created one image using a more modern method that uses red and cerulean layers combined with special glasses to show us these images in 3-D.
Located on the first floor of Cohodas, the Beaumier Heritage Center is a central location for many different These exhibits reveal interesting facts about the history of NMU and the Upper Peninsula.
“We are focused on the people of the U.P. and how the cultural and ethnic groups contributed to what we call the culture of the Yooper and our identity as a region,” said Dan Truckey, the Beaumier Heritage Center’s museum director. “All of our programs, whether they be exhibits or concerts or lectures or workshops, they are all focused on that mission.”
To see this display of history and technology, visit the Beaumier Heritage Center on the first floor of Cohodas. Their hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Saturday. This exhibit is free and open to the public until Oct. 13. For more information about the exhibit or the Beaumier Heritage Center visit www.nmu.edu/Centers/BeaumierHeritageCenter.
