About Us

Electronic media artist working in expanded cinema, and computer-generated art at MIT and Bell Labs for projects such as Poemfields, Stan VanDerBeek , envisioned “the Image Laboratory” at UMBC in 1984. Just before he died, he said, “It seems that we’ve established our part of the future with the advent of the Image Lab.” This seed project, originally funded by Jim Henson of the Muppets and IBM’s Fulcrum grant project, evolved into the Imaging Research Center (IRC) by the early 1990s to develop a research facility to pioneer the future of art and technology. 40 years since VanDerBeeks vision, the IRC has grown into a major hub for interdisciplinary collaboration across all fields at the University.

By 1987, the new Chair of Visual Arts, David Yager also became Director of the Image Lab and placed it’s dedicated equipment in an unused large closet on the 2nd floor of the Fine Arts Building. The IRC envisioned high-end computers and emerging imaging technologies that were developed and available to scientists in Silicone Valley to be in the hands of artists. President Freeman Hrawbowski and David Yager visited CEO’s in Silicone to implement this vision.With support from IBM, Apple, Hewlett Packard, Polaroid and other corporations, the IRC eventually moved into a large area of the basement of the Engineering Building with offices and labs. With high-end input/out, the latest 3D Silicone graphics, time-based video and audio (including MIDI) and digital film recording onto 16mm and 36mm, the Image Lab was beginning to build projects creating experimental computer generated that met industry standard for films. Throughout the 1990s the IRC produced 3D simulations, immersive caves such as recreating high-end archeological projects of lost sites for the Museums, galleries and television such as the Discovery Channel and as the renamed “Imaging Research Center” by 1999 created the Cone Sisters’ Apartment Virtual Tour on permanent display since 2001 at the Baltimore Museum of Art. In 2003, the IRC moved into 7,000 sf retrofitted labs and offices in the basement of the new Information and Technology Building next to the IMDA, MFA program in Visual Arts allowing a fluid collaboration where graduate students and the IRC benefited from the research collaborations.

IRC formally established. Developed one of the earliest university-based centers devoted to digital imaging, visualization, animation, and interactive media. The center became known nationally for combining artists, programmers, scientists, and engineers.

From the early 2000’s on, external projects and partners included Baltimore Museum of Art, the National Science Foundation; NASA collaborations; Smithsonian,  National Academy of Sciences, NASA visualization work; Discovery Channel’s,…..  museum visualization projects; early scientific animation; creating biomedical animation, documentary and feature film productions; mobile and web applications, .;

This seed project, the Image Lab, originally funded by the Muppets and IBM, evolved into the Imaging Research Center (IRC) developed into a research facility that continuously pioneered media into the future. 40 years since VanDerBeeks vision, the IRC has grown into a major hub for interdisciplinary collaboration across all scholary and creative fields at the University with students, faculty, researchers and professionals working together to fulfill a vision that addresses social needs, and reflects our contemporary moment.